PHILADELPHIA, PA - The Men's soccer team had a disappointing loss this weekend when the Dayton Flyers (5-9-1, 1-5-1)snuck away with a 1-0 win against the Explorers (6-9-2, 2-5-1) after a mid-game penalty kick put them up a point and ended up the only score in the game.

Both teams played aggressively and volleyed possession back and forth for 90 minutes. Neither team spent much time in the boxes, but when it did get close, solid defense on both sides kept the ball out of the nets the entire game.

A foul on La Salle in front of their net set up Dayton's penalty shot in the 35th minute. Flyer Defender Ryan Handbury sent the ball into the back of the goal when La Salle keeper Dan Pfeiffer (Warminster, PA/William Tennant) made the right read but couldn't get his hands on the ball, putting the Flyers at a 1-0 lead.

The defensive play continued relentlessly, causing continuous interceptions and turnovers that made for little scoring opportunities on either side of the ball. La Salle had a chance with a penalty kick late in the second half, but could not capitalize when Dayton goalie Nick Tarkany made an impressive diving save to preserve the shutout. Both he and Pfeiffer had 6 saves on the day.

"Dayton has a good tradition in the A-10; they've made the playoffs for eight straight years," said Coach Farrell after Sunday's game. "The conference has really elevated its level of play this year. You have to play a full 90 every time; you can't take off a half and then push it at the end and expect to come out on top. We learned from this one and we continue to build as a team. Now it's important that we end on a positive note"

That positive note will come from the Explorers' final game of the season next weekend, as they host George Washington University at 1:00 pm on Sunday. That game is also Senior Day for La Salle, in which they will honor seniors Matt Kelly (Philadelphia, PA/La Salle College HS) and Jeff Spiker (Yardley, PA/Pennsbury).