NO. 1 WARRIORS RATTLE NO. 4 MOHAVE AT HOME
August 30, 2026
Ottumwa, IA – Three second-half goals propelled No. 1 nationally ranked Indian Hills Men’s Soccer to its first signature victory of the 2026 campaign as the Warriors toppled No. 4 ranked Mohave College (AZ) 3-1 on the final day of the IHCC Classic Sunday. The Warriors improve to 2-0-2 on the year.
The Warrior offense erupted for three goals in a seven-minute span to knock off the Bighorns, a team that advanced to last year’s National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) DI Men’s Soccer National Championship semifinal round. Indian Hills has now secured a win over a top-five nationally ranked opponent in each of the last five seasons.
The Warriors saw second-half scores from freshman Pedro Beserra (Manaus, Brazil/Park) and sophomores Noah Liebl (Waukesha, WI/Waukesha West) and Furkan Cengizay (Randers, Denmark/Tadium Handelsgymnasiet Randers) to push past Mohave. Sophomore keeper Sean Suzuki (Sydney, Australia/Chatswood) earned the victory in net for the Warriors, stopping a pair of shots in the complete-game win.
Indian Hills controlled the tempo of the match from start to finish, posting a 22-5 shots advantage throughout the course of the day, including an 8-3 edge in shots on goal. The Warriors earned a 3-1 edge in corner kicks.
Following a scoreless opening half that saw Indian Hills hold an 8-2 advantage in shots at the break, the Warriors finally broke through in the 50th minute as Beserra netted his first collegiate goal. Cengizay played a cross on a free kick into the box that found Matus Velicky (Trnava, Slovakia/Jána Hollého) on the backpost. A slight touch from Velicky found an open Beserra in front of the net who buried a low-lying shot to the corner for the initial 1-0 lead.
Less than two minutes later at the 51:38 mark, freshman Waleed Hadj-Hamou (Frisco, TX/Wakeland) played another free kick to the backpost where Velicky once again set himself up in position for an assist. The freshman headed the cross in front of the net that found Liebl for his first goal of the season, and second career tally.
Mohave countered the Warrior offense with a goal at the 53:55 mark to cut the deficit in half, but less than three minutes later Cengizay earned a penalty kick inside the Bighorn box. The sophomore buried a shot to the low left corner to push the lead back to two goals, an advantage the Warriors maintained the rest of the way.
Cengizay, who has now scored a goal in three of the team’s first four matches of the year, leads the Warriors with eight points on the season.
The Warriors’ gauntlet of a schedule continues as the top-ranked team in the nation heads to Florida for a pair of premiere matchups. Indian Hills will take on Miami Dade College (FL) in Miami, FL at 6:00 PM CT on Thursday, September 3 before traveling to No. 2 Daytona State College (FL) in a rematch of the 2025 NJCAA DI Men’s Soccer National Championship at 1:00 PM CT on Saturday, September 5.
