HARRISONBURG, Va. (JMU Athletics) — No. 10 James Madison men’s soccer remained unbeaten, as it drew No. 5 Marshall, 2-2, on Friday night at Veterans Memorial Park in Sun Belt Conference action.

The Dukes moved to 5-0-4 (1-0-1 SBC) on the season, as they had their five-match win streak snapped but off to their best nine-match start since 2004. The Thundering Herd moved to 7-1-2 (2-0-1 SBC).

Redshirt seniors Josiah Blanton and Evan Southern were the goal scorers for the Dukes and paced the offense with three shots each. Junior Sebastian Conlon spent the full 90 minutes in goal, making two saves.

Quoting Head Coach Paul Zazenski
“The guys are a bit disappointed not to get the result but Marshall away is a difficult game to play. I thought our first half was one of our best halves of the year. We just didn’t see out the game in the second half and we will use that experience to be better moving forward. Proud of the guys for battling and getting a road point against a top-five team in the country.”

How It Happened
• In the 14th minute, Southern beat a Marshall defender at the top of the 18 box before dribbling towards the goal. Southern fired a shot after beating the keeper, being saved by a Herd defender, before gathering the rebound and sneaking it by the near post for a goal.
• The Dukes added a goal in the 55th minute, capitalizing on a Marshall miscue. After the Herd played the ball back in their own third, a defender slipped and allowed Blanton to take possession and net his second goal of the season.
• Marshall got on the board in the 70th minute, as a ball was played into the box before Marco Silva turned and took a shot. Conlon was in position for the save, but the shot was deflected off the boot of a JMU defender into the net.
• The equalizing goal came in the 87th minute, as Marshall pressured and crossed the ball into the box. A running defender for JMU slipped on the turf as he was in line with the cross, leading Joao Roberto 1-on-1 with Conlon where he found the back of the net.

Quick Facts
• Both teams put four shots on goal, but Marshall outshot JMU 13-7.
• JMU was called for onside five times compared to MU’s one.
• The Dukes moved to 2-1-2 in their last five matches against ranked opponents.
• Similarly, the Dukes are 2-1-2 against their last five top-five teams faced.
• The goal for Evan Southern was the 34th of his collegiate career to push his career point total to 84.
• The last time the Dukes had a nine-match unbeaten streak at any point in a single season was when they began the 2004 season 12-0-1 for a 13-match streak.

Up Next
The Dukes are back on the pitch on Tuesday, Oct. 8 when they make the short trek to Virginia for a 7 p.m. kickoff.

— JMU Athletics —