UNOH Topples No. 23 IWU in Seven-Goal Thriller

LIMA, OH - UNOH used a first half explosion to pick up their first win of the season in a match with seven goals split 4-3 against No. 23 Indiana Wesleyan.

The Racers controlled the pace of the game early on and dominated possession through the first half. Jovaunn Ramos used a brilliant through ball from Tomas Echevarria in the 20th minute that created a one-on-one opportunity promptly finished in the back of the net. Nine minutes later, it a dribbling clinic by Echevarria himself going through the legs of a defender and finishing top shelf to put the Racers up 2-0. UNOH struck once more just three minutes later on a perfectly excecuted counter attack. Georgios Theodoulides parried a save from a hard shot that landed right at the feet of Tomas Ulla. Ulla hit ahead to Echevarria on the run who beat one defender and found himself in space at midfield. Echevarria fed a streaking Moritz Guettel who stayed ahead of his defender and kept the ball low into the opposite corner stunning the Wildcats with a 3-0 lead at the half.

The game seemed decided when the teams took the field again, but the potent Wildcat offense was not ready to concede the match. Just 54 seconds into the second half, Indiana Wesleyan finally got on the scoreboard and the shootout was on. UNOH answered in the 63rd minute off a free kick by the keeper, Theodoulides, who rocketed the ball from five yards outside his own 18 that found it's way through, untouched, to Diego Cerezo just outside the opposite 18. Cerezo moved left around a defender and shot opposite side past a befuddled keeper for a 4-1 lead. The excitement was short-lived as Indiana Wesleyan took their very next possession down the field and scored from a parried save into an open net. One more time, the Wildcats notched in the 68th minute to cut the lead to just one, but UNOH locked down defensively and allowed just one shot over the next 22 minutes to preserve the victory.

Ramos, Echevarria, Guettel and Cerezo all scored their first goals of the season with Echevarria adding two assists to his scoreline.

Georgious Theodoulides (1-2-1) made three saves, one in the final minutes of the game, to pick up his first win with the program.

The trek doesn't get any easier for UNOH as they open a five-game road trip on Saturday, September 9, at (RV) Union. The Racers then head to No. 4 Rio Grande and No. 15 Grace before opening conference play at Siena Heights and Lourdes.