ARLINGTON HEIGHTS – Matthew Goulding rose above the Davenport defense to head home the only goal of the game in Roosevelt's 1-0 win over the Panthers on Sunday at Morris Field.

The Lakers stayed in control of their destiny in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference by navigating a nervy match against the red-hot Panthers. Davenport entered the game on a six-match unbeaten streak and that confidence resulted in the Panthers controlling the ball for large portions of the first half. Yet they could not find an answer to crack Eric Carvajal and the Roosevelt defense.

Davenport put 11 shots on target against Carvajal and the senior from Arlington Heights, Ill. stopped all of them for his record-breaking 16^th career shutout. He certainly had his work cut out for him with several athletic stops on shots in and around the goal area. He also had a bit of help from Valdemar Nambo, who cleared one shot off the goal line for a team saves. Carvajal saved his best for last, though, as he dove to his left to block a shot through traffic in the final three minutes of the match.

Roosevelt (9-2-4, 7-1-2 GLIAC) did not have much of the possession in the first half, but it made the most of its best chance in the opening 45 minutes. The Lakers were able to quickly counterattack late in the first half and managed to work their way down the field for their fourth corner kick of the half.

After playing the first three short, Luca Swinton sent a perfect cross into the box towards the mass of bodies. Goulding pinched up from his spot on the back line and nodded home the cross with just 63 seconds left in the half to give the Lakers a boost heading into the intermission.

The momentum carried over into the start of the second half as Roosevelt applied more pressure on the Davenport defense and created chances. The Lakers attempted 10 shots in the second half, most of which came during those opening 15 minutes when the chances were plentiful. However, Roosevelt put just three of those attempts on frame to squander chances to increase the lead.

Instead, the Lakers continued to absorb pressure over the final 20 minutes of the match as Davenport searched for an equalizer. Carvajal did his part with six second-half stops and the Panthers sent a few of their 12 shots over the net as well.

HOME SWEET HOME: A big reason Roosevelt is battling for the right to host the GLIAC semifinals and final is its play at Morris Field. The Lakers are 11-0-3 in their last 14 matches in Arlington Heights, dating back to last season, and an impressive 14-1-3 at home the last two seasons. 

UP NEXT: Roosevelt will hit the road as it attempts to wrap up a second consecutive GLIAC regular-season title. The Lakers will face off against Northern Michigan on Friday after the women face the Wildcats before a matchup with Parkside in Wisconsin on Sunday.