May 24, 2004
Barcelona, Spain - The Loyola men's soccer team is now 2-0 on their Barcelona Tour with victories over Sant Vincenc de Torrello and Horta. The Greyhounds are three-quarters of their way through their 12-day tour of Spain and have one more game on slate before returning to the states.
After a few days of relaxing and sightseeing in Calella and Barcelona, Loyola faced Sant Vincenc de Torrello. Chase Franklin opened the scoring when he headed in the ball off of Rade Kokovic's free kick. Mark Donnelly made it 2-0, taking a pass from Jay Joyce and dribbling the keeper. The 'Hounds would go up 3-0 at halftime with Kevin Nash blasting a shot from 25 yards out.
A couple second-half goals from Nate Lyden and Steven Coleman gave Loyola a 5-0 victory. The Greyhounds would tour and train at the famous FC Barcelona. They visited Camp Nou, home of FC Barcelona, one of the biggest soccer clubs in the world with a capacity for 98,000 spectators.
Match Two would prove to be much tougher as Horta, a high-standard semi-professional club, went up 1-0 in the first half off a set piece into the box that was headed home. The Greyhounds responded in the second half when Joyce tied the game off a nice lay from Nash, firing a laser from 18, rising into the top corner near post.
Nash later found Brian O'Connor, who beat the Horta keeper to give the 'Hounds a 2-1 lead. Lyden would finish the scoring in similar fashion after Joyce split two defenders on the dribble.
Loyola, 2-0 on their Spanish trip, face Espanyol FC Reserve after a trip to Barcelona where they will take in a match between RCD Espanyol and Real Club Murcia at Olympic Stadium, the main venue for the 1992 Summer Olympic Games in Barcelona.
