St. John’s Clinches BIG EAST Championship Berth with 2-0 Win at DePaul

Saturday, October 30

Chicago, Ill. (Wish Field)

2 p.m.

St. John's University

10-4-2, 5-2-2BE

DePaul

7-7-2, 3-4-2BE

St. John's

DePaul

St. John’s Clinches BIG EAST Championship Berth with 2-0 Win at DePaul

10/30/2021 4:54:00 PM | Men's Soccer

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

The Johnnies score twice in the first 15 minutes for their 10th win of the year

By: Andrew O'Connell

CHICAGO (Oct. 30, 2021) – The St. John's men's soccer team used a pair of early goals to defeat DePaul, 2-0, on Saturday afternoon at Wish Field and clinch a berth in the BIG EAST Tournament.

Andrew Bennett quickly put St. John's (10-4-2, 5-2-2 BIG EAST) on the board in the fourth minute of action with his second goal of the year. Just over 10 minutes later, Jared Juleau added onto the St. John's lead, giving the Red Storm all the offense it would need for its fifth BIG EAST victory of the season. Brandon Knapp recorded his league-leading sixth assist of the fall on the play.

Luka Gavran added onto his NCAA-leading shutout total with his 10^th clean sheet of the season. The redshirt junior became just the seventh keeper in St. John's history to record 10 or more shutouts in a single campaign and the first to do so since Derby Carrillo logged 11 during the 2009 BIG EAST Championship season. Gavran, who entered the weekend ranked in the top five nationally in both goals against average and save percentage, improved his numbers in those categories to 0.54 and .839, respectively. The Hamilton, Ont., made one stop against the Blue Demons, who were outshot by the Johnnies, 13-3, on the afternoon. St. John's also earned nine corner kicks while conceding just two.

With its 10th victory of the campaign, St. John's clinched a spot in the 2021 BIG EAST Men's Soccer Championship, which will begin on Nov. 6 at campus sites. A clearer picture of potential postseason seeding scenarios will come into focus following the four BIG EAST matches on tap for Saturday night, but St. John's can finish as high as second and no lower than fifth. The top two teams in the final regular season conference standings earn a bye to the semifinals while the third and fourth seeds will host a quarterfinal contest on Nov. 6.

St. John's improved to 10-3-4 all-time against DePaul, but won in Chicago for the first time since 2006.

The Red Storm struck first in just the fourth minute of action. With possession of the ball on the other side of midfield, Lucas Bartlett sent a long ball toward the Red Storm attacking third. A DePaul defender attempted to head the ball toward a teammate, but he misplayed the attempt and allowed Bennett to win control of the loose ball before slipping a right-footed roller past a charging Gandhi Cruz.

St. John's continued to press its case after grabbing the early lead, as Adrian Roseth created two spectacular scoring chances in as many minutes, but was unable to add onto the advantage.

With just about 15 minutes gone in the opening half Juleau doubled the Red Storm lead with a highlight-reel goal. After taking a pass from Knapp just inside midfield, Juleau dribbled briefly before launching a left-footed rocket from 23 yards out that sailed past the outstretched hand of Cruz.

At the intermission, St. John's held a 7-1 edge in shots and had earned five corners to the Blue Demons' one.

The Red Storm continued to attack in the second stanza, earning three corner kicks in the span of just 13 minutes.

DePaul's lone shot on goal came in the 59^th minute, as Gavran smothered a rolling ball off the foot of Jake Fuderer to preserve his clean sheet.

The Red Storm will close out the regular season on Wednesday night in Queens, welcoming the Butler Bulldogs to Belson Stadium for Senior Night. Kick-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. on the BIG EAST Digital Network.