Illinois Wesleyan men's soccer ends historic season with NCAA tournament loss

A record-setting season for the Illinois Wesleyan University (IWU) men's soccer team ended with a 2-1 loss to Macalester College in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on Saturday, November 15. The match took place at Macalester Stadium in St. Paul, Minnesota.

This year marked IWU's most successful season, as the team finished with a 13-3-2 record and achieved the highest number of wins in program history. It was also only their second appearance in the NCAA Tournament. With this victory, Macalester improved its record to 16-4 and will move on to face either the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire or Milwaukee School of Engineering in the next round.

Macalester opened scoring just two minutes into play after capitalizing on an IWU turnover. A sequence of passes led to Zach Liptzin scoring into an open net, giving Macalester a 1-0 lead. Fifteen minutes later, Macalester had another shot on target that was blocked by IWU senior goalkeeper Sam Kedzior—his only save of the game. The score remained unchanged through halftime.

The second half began with both teams' defenses holding strong until IWU freshman Daniel Smazil missed high with a shot in the 67th minute. Shortly after, Kuba Ferguson extended Macalester’s lead by shooting from 20 yards out; Kedzior got his hands on it but could not keep it out.

IWU’s best opportunity came when junior Matthew Perchik nearly scored but was denied by a defender before crossing the goal line. In the final five minutes, Illinois Wesleyan pressed forward and earned a corner kick. Sophomore Ben Lyons sent in a pass that reached junior Ryder Coleman, who scored to reduce the deficit to one goal.

Despite increased offensive pressure late in regulation, IWU could not find an equalizer as their final attempts were stopped by Macalester’s defense.

Both teams recorded eight shots during the match; however, Macalester placed one more shot on goal than Illinois Wesleyan.