The Online Reflector

The University of Indianapolis men’s soccer team went undefeated over the weekend, claiming two conference victories. The two wins brought the Greyhounds record to 6-2-2 overall and 5-1-2 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

The Greyhounds wrapped up their weekend on Oct. 6, with a victory over the University of Illinois Springfield PrairieStars 3-1.

The Greyhounds posted two of their goals in the first half, with each one coming from junior forward Ngwese Ebangwese at the 8:51 and 40:46 marks. The Greyhounds added on one more goal in the second half from sophomore back Brendon Widau off an assist from freshman back Michael King. The PrairieStars would respond with the last goal of the match at the 85:29 mark, but the Greyhounds held on for the win.

Redshirt junior goalkeeper Andrew Verhonik claimed the victory in goal for the Hounds with three saves, and allowed just one goal in the match.

In the first game on Oct. 4, the Greyhounds defeated the University of Southern Indiana Screaming Eagles 2-0. Both goals for the Hounds came in the second half, as neither team could score in the first. The Greyhounds were led statistically by sophomore midfielder JT Hiquet, who posted one of the two goals by the Hounds at the 49:56 mark assisted by sophomore forward Zak Mitiche. Hiquet took three shots total, with just one on goal for the score.

Verhonik took the win for the Hounds in goal, making four saves and allowing no goals.

The weekend prior, the Greyhounds fell 3-2 to the visiting Quincy University Hawks on Sept. 29.

In the seventh minute of the match, sophomore back Daniel Wellmann gave
the Greyhounds their first goal, following an assist from redshirt senior
midfielder Roger Lee. The Hawks fired back shortly after and evened the match at the 27:08 mark with a penalty kick. Seven minutes later, the Hawks scored again, extending their lead to 2-1.

In the second half, the Hawks wasted no time successfully finding the goal again at the 48:34 mark, giving themselves a two-point edge over the Hounds. At the 87:54 mark, senior midfielder Kevin Eggert scored the final goal of the game following an assist from junior back Max Rohda.

Both teams took many shots during the match. Quincy had 13 total shot attempts, while UIndy took 11.

Verhonik had three saves during the match, taking the loss in goal for the Hounds.

“This was a tough game because [the] Quincy Hawks have been a great team. Although we did well at the beginning, it ended up with [us] losing the game,” said Head Men’s Soccer Coach John Higgins. “We deserved to lose the game.”

On Sep. 27, after 110 minutes of play, the Greyhounds ended their match with
the Truman State University Bulldogs in a 1-1 tie.

Neither team scored in the match until the Bulldogs’ sophomore midfielder
Nick Tolmais made a shot in goal at the 6:40 mark. In the second half, the Greyhounds scored their first goal at the 46:06 mark, with a goal by senior midfielder Matt Franco, assisted by Ebangwese. The game carried into two overtimes, and neither team could score, so the match ended 1-1. Verhonik took the win in goal for the Hounds, with three saves in the match.

The Greyhounds attempted 16 total shots during the match, while the Bulldogs took six. Ebangwese and Eggert led the Greyhounds in shots, each taking four shots total.

“We should have [had] a better performance. It was surprising that we lost [so] many goals and drew the match with the Bulldogs, even if we had our own
topographical advantages,” Higgins said.

Ebangwese said that the Greyhounds did not capatilize on moments when they should have.

“I think we could achieve a higher standard. To compare with the Bulldogs, we
had better opportunities undoubtedly. We dominated the match, yet we didn’t
seize the chance,” Ebangwese said. “The word resilient has been the character of our team. That is, we can lose a goal, but we don’t panic. ”

The next match for the Greyhounds will be against the Bellarmine University
Knights at Key Stadium on Oct. 11. The match is set to begin at 7:30 p.m.