ST. PAUL, Minn. – The University of Northwestern men's soccer team made Wednesday night one to remember, defeating the University of Wisconsin-Stout 4-2 after celebrating Head Coach Greg Wheaton's 200th career victory from last week's win over Emmaus University. The evening began on a meaningful note as his daughter, Julia Wheaton, delivered the national anthem before kickoff.
The first half was a back-and-forth battle that ended level at 2-2. Northwestern opened the scoring just 10 minutes in when Jay'ce Jones (Marina del Rey, Calif./Palisades Charter) broke through the Blue Devils' back line and was fouled by the keeper inside the box. Captain Simeon Friesen (Mounds View, Minn./Homeschool) calmly converted the penalty for his first goal of the season. Stout responded less than a minute later with a breakaway goal. At the 14-minute mark, Jared Mojardin (Denver, Colo./Northeast Early College) intercepted a pass in the defensive third, sprinted the length of the field, and unselfishly squared the ball across to Spencer Ford (Savage, Minn./Prior Lake), who netted his first collegiate goal to give UNW a 2-1 advantage. Stout equalized again late in the half from the penalty spot despite Hayden DeAnnuntis (Ferndale, Wash./Ferndale) guessing the correct direction. Moments later, Northwestern appeared to retake the lead when Luis Villalobos (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) headed home a cross from Mojardin, but the ball was ruled out of bounds on the pass.
The second half remained deadlocked until the 81st minute when Mojardin gave the Eagles the breakthrough. After a clearance fell to him at the top of the box, he took one touch and drilled a shot into the bottom left corner for his first goal of the season, sending the crowd into celebration. Four minutes later, Jones drew another penalty, and Friesen buried his second of the night and the season to secure the 4-2 victory.
Friesen paced the attack with two goals on three shots, while Mojardin delivered a complete 90-minute performance with a goal and an assist on perfect 3-for-3 shooting. Ford added a goal on his lone attempt, and Nathan Martinez (Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee) tested the Stout keeper with two shots. DeAnnuntis closed the night with two saves.
With the win, Northwestern improves to 2-2 on the season. The Eagles will travel to Storm Lake, Iowa, to face Buena Vista University on Tuesday, Sept. 16, at 5:00 PM.
