The Webster University men's soccer team faced a tough opponent on the road and came away with a loss as the Gorloks fell to Illinois Wesleyan University, 5-2, on September 26 in Bloomington, IL.
The Titans took a 1-0 lead 3:43 into the contest when they scored a goal on Gorlok starting goalie Kyle Hertel (SO, Sandpoint, ID/Sandpoint). Illinois Wesleyan had an 8-3 edge in shots for the half as the teams entered the locker room with Wesleyan up, 1-0. Hertel made two saves in the half.
Webster would tie the game eight minutes into the second half as Dino Music (SR, St. Louis, MO/Mehlville) fired in his second goal of the season, assisted by Tucker Hively (SR, St. Louis, MO/Priory) at 53:01. The tally tied Music for the team lead with freshman Logan Takizawa (Holualoa, HI/Konawaena). The Gorloks picked up the pace offensively in the second half, trailing 10-9 in shots after being down 8-3 at the half.
The Titans regained the lead with a goal at 63:28, as they took a 2-1 lead. Wesleyan added another goal, unassisted, just six minutes later at 69:54 to take a 3-1 lead in the contest. Just over a minute later, the Titans took a commanding lead with their thrid goal in an eight-minute span, also unassisted, at 71:18.
Webster would cut the lead to two with a goal by Hively, assisted by freshman David Allred (St. Louis, MO/Bishop DuBourg), at 74:21. The goal was Hively's second, also tying him with Takizawa and Music for the team lead.
Eli Smith (SO, Orlando, FL/Phillips) took over in the nets at this point for the Gorloks. Welseyan would add one more goal, at the 88:41 mark, for the 5-2 final.
Webster finished with 12 shots, including five on goal in the loss. Hertel and Smith wound up facing 21 shots, with nine on goal for the Titans. Hertel wound up taking the loss for Webster as he fell to 1-4 on the year.
Webster is 4-4-1 on the season. Illinois Wesleyan improves to 5-3-1 with the win. The Titans last three wins have come against SLIAC opponents
Webster opens play in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference as it hosts Iowa Wesleyan University on September 30 at the Soccer Park. The game has been selected as the SLIAC Game of the Week.
