The Bradley University Braves must have done something that got to University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee junior Steve Sperl, as he scored the first goal in the Panthers’ 2-0 first-round victory in the NCAA Tournament.

The goal gave Sperl three goals against the Braves on the season.

“It was nothing special, it just seemed like I have played well each time we played Bradley this season,” Sperl said.

Sperl may not have thought much of the difficulty of his goal, which was scored after he intercepted an attempted back pass by Bradley, but it was a goal nonetheless. It came in the 11th minute, taking some pressure off the Panthers.

UWM was able to build on its lead in the 51st minute on a goal by sophomore Andre Francois. Francois headed the ball off the right post and in, creating some breathing room for the Panthers.

Bradley had a few chances through the remainder of the game, but was consistently thwarted by UWM’s stingy goalkeeper and defense. Freshman keeper Grant Fernstrum has now gone 450 minutes without allowing a single goal, spanning five games. His 10th shutout of the season ties a UWM personal record, while the team’s 12th shutout equals a team record.

Coach Louis Bennett seemed to accredit the shutout to the defense in front of Fernstrum. “Today wasn’t his (Fernstrum’s) best performance. … He’ll be the first to admit that. The shutout today went to Billy Meier, Steve Bode, Travis Phillips, Zeke Dombrowski and the rest of the people in back. But he has big shoulders and can carry that kind of responsibility.”

The Panthers were outshot 24-21, yet only five of Bradley’s shots were on goal. Only allowing five shots out of 24 to be on target was due to the grit of a bullish defense that refused to acquiesce.

The team has now made it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the fourth season in a row, although the second-seeded New Mexico Lobos pose a real threat to UWM.

“It will be a challenge,” Bennett said. “We will take a quick, short breath to enjoy this and go from there. Now we have to formulate a game plan to take care of them.”

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