TicketsAug. 15, 2011
CINCINNATI - University of Cincinnati freshman forward Cole DeNormandie (Lincoln, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury Regional) scored on a diving header in the 20th minute to propel the Bearcats to a 1-0 exhibition victory over Bowling Green on Monday night at Gettler Stadium.
The freshman, who started up top for the Bearcats, got on the end of a cross from Shamar Shelton (Kingston, Jamaica/St. George's) off the left flank and directed a header to the far post past BG goalkeeper and former Bearcat Miguel Rosales.
The match was played in three 30-minute periods, allowing the coaching staffs on both sides to work with different formations and substitution patterns. The first period was strong for the Bearcats as they held possession and got forward for several quality chances.
Twenty different Bearcats saw action, including seven true freshmen and three first-year transfers.
The starting group saw fresh faces in Emmanuel Appiah (Westerville, Ohio/Westerville Central), Matt Remaley (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Mountain Vista), DeNormandie, and Will Diebold (Coppell, Texas/Jesuit College Prep).
The goalkeeping situation, a position battle to watch closely, was handled by redshirt junior and captain Joey Barnard (McKinney, Texas/McKinney), who made three saves in 60 minutes of action. Redshirt freshman Taylor Hafling (Louisville, Ky./New Mexico), a transfer from New Mexico, played the final 30 minutes and made a pair of saves.
UC outshot the Falcons, 10-9, on the evening and were strong defensively, led by the backline combo of senior Sam Klosterman (Belleville, Ill./Belleville West), junior Roger Thompson (Brampton, Ontario/St. Thomas Aquinas), sophomore Alex Hadley (Dayton, Ohio/Carroll), and junior Mike Brizzi (Loveland, Ohio/Loveland).
The Bearcats head to the Athletes in Action Sports Complex and Retreat Center in Xenia, Ohio for five days of training and team bonding before continuing up I-71 to Cleveland to battle Cleveland State on Saturday at 4 p.m. in the exhibition finale.