URBANA — Despite outstanding play by their defense, including several top-notch saves by goalkeeper Isaac Radnitzer late in the contest, the Uni boys couldn't get back in the win column Thursday, falling to the visiting Mahomet-Seymour Bulldogs 1-0 in a nonconference game.

Radnitzer finished with 18 saves, including 12 in the first half.

The Illineks are now 2-2-1 overall. The Bulldogs, a Class AA team in soccer (Uni is Class A), are 3-1.

With about 10 minutes, 30 seconds left in the contest, Radnitzer made a superb save of a point-blank shot that kept the hosts in the game. He followed that up with two more key saves within the next 90 seconds.

Radnitzer's performance came on the same day that The News-Gazette named him the male high school athlete of the week in recognition of his 30 saves during Saturday's Uni High Soccer Shoot Out.

On the other side of the field, however, Uni's offense went scoreless for the second time in as many games. The Illineks managed just 2 shots on goal, 1 by junior Holden Bucher in the first half and the other by senior Jake Seeley in the second.

The day's only goal came 7:07 after halftime when Mahomet-Seymour's Matt Rufener looped a shot over Radnitzer's fingers from 8 feet at the top of the box.

The goal, which went in just under the crossbar, was the only blemish on a defense that came back impressively from a 5-0 loss to Judah Christian just two days earlier.

"They're always a strong team," Rufener said of the Illineks.

Rufener, a senior, played in last year's varsity game when Uni defeated the Bulldogs 2-0. He was impressed with what he saw Thursday.

"They're always a solid team," he said.

For Radnitzer, who was just named one of the top 50 area players to watch this year by The News-Gazette, Uni's performance was a hopeful sign after Tuesday's disappointing loss to the crosstown rival Tribe.

"We didn't play well at all against Judah," he said. "It was more mental than anything else. We did a nice job of coming back from that."

Said defender T.J. Bozada, who with Seeley was another News-Gazette top 50 pick: "Judah was the first team we played that was good at crossing the ball. Mahomet has the same style. We did a lot better at that today."

Coach Philip Anders noted that Judah scored all of its goals — including 2 by the area's top returning scorer, Alex Foreman — during transition play. Anders and his players worked on dealing with that in practice Wednesday.

But while the Uni defense tightened up, the offense remained in a drought. Since the first game of the season, a 5-1 win over Oakwood, the Illineks have scored just twice in four contests.

"We're still not getting high percentage shots in front of the goal," Anders said.

Overall, Anders liked the way his players responded after the Judah disappointment.

"We came out today in the first half, and their coach [Mahomet-Seymour's Neil Anderson] felt we were playing too physical," Anders said. "I take that as a compliment. . . . They [the Illineks] came out playing with an intensity they didn't have Tuesday. So really, they played strong.

"In my aftergame talk, I mentioned the positives. They could have won that game, against a big school. But I said, 'Don't be happy with that score.'"

The boys will visit Fisher on Tuesday in a rematch of the final game of last weekend's season-opening Soccer Shoot Out tournament, when the teams tied 1-1.

In junior varsity action, Uni lost 3-1. Sophomore Loic Hostetter scored with an assist from sophomore Eric Fritzsche to give the Illineks a 1-0 lead going into halftime. Mahomet-Seymour scored 3 unanswered goals in the second half. The JV record is now 0-2.

Senior Isaac Radnitzer gets ready to send the ball downfield after making one of his 18 saves Thursday against Mahomet-Seymour. Radnitzer was named The News-Gazette's male high school athlete of the week for his 30-save performance Saturday during the Uni High Soccer Shoot Out. Gargoyle photo (click to enlarge)

THE SEASON SO FAR

2007 BOYS SOCCER VARSITY RECORD: 2-2-1 overall, 0-1 East Central Illinois Conference
(home games listed in bold)

Aug. 25: Oakwood (Uni High Soccer Shoot Out), W 5-1

• Story: Illineks win first game of season-opening tournament
• Halftime score: Uni 2, Oakwood 1
• Uni goals: Dan Lilly, 2; Holden Bucher, 1; Sam Imlay, 1; Jake Seeley, 1
• Uni assists: Sam Imlay, 2; David Hjelmstad, 1; Stephen Prochaska, 1; Jake Seeley, 1
• Uni saves: Isaac Radnitzer, 6

Aug. 25: Blue Ridge (Uni High Soccer Shoot Out), W 1-0

• Story: Sophomore's first varsity goal turns out to be game winner
• Halftime score: Uni 0, Blue Ridge 0
• Uni goal: Eddie Diazmunoz, 1
• Uni assist: Holden Bucher, 1
• Uni saves: Isaac Radnitzer, 13

Aug. 25: Fisher (Uni High Soccer Shoot Out), T 1-1

• Story: Uni wins seventh consecutive Shoot Out title
• Halftime score: Uni 1, Fisher 1
• Uni goal: Eddie Diazmunoz, 1 (season total: 2)
• Uni assist: none
• Uni saves: Isaac Radnitzer, 11

Aug. 28: at Judah Christian, L 5-0 *

• Story: Judah downs Uni
• Halftime score: Judah Christian 2, Uni 0
• Uni goals: none
• Uni assists: none
• Uni saves: Isaac Radnitzer, 8
• JV game: Judah Christian 1, Uni 0

Aug. 30: Mahomet-Seymour, L 1-0

• Story: see above
• Halftime score: 0-0
• Uni goals: none
• Uni assists: none
• Uni saves: Isaac Radnitzer, 18
• JV game: Mahomet-Seymour 3, Uni 1 (goal by Loic Hostetter, with assist by Eric Fritzsche)

Next opponent: Fisher, Sept. 4, at Fisher H.S. (directions); varsity to begin at 4:30 p.m.

* East Central Illinois Conference game