William Penn Denied Upset of #1 Central Methodist

Oskaloosa–The Statesmen men’s soccer team threw everything it had at the NAIA’s top-ranked squad, but unfortunately it was just a bit shy as WPU fell 3-2 to Central Methodist in Heart of America Athletic Conference action Saturday.

In a top-20 matchup of the last two remaining undefeated teams in the league, #16 William Penn (8-3, 4-1 Heart) could not take down the Eagles (11-1, 5-0 Heart) and post yet another signature win. The loss ends the program’s six-game winning streak.

Despite being outshot 25-11 (11-5 on goal), the hosts actually took the early lead on a corner-kick score. Eduardo Bonatto (Sr., Rio Grande, Brazil, Business Management) laid a beautiful ball into the box and Donny Mesina (Sr., Inglewood, Calif., Sports Management) headed it home for a 1-0 advantage at the 13:01 mark. The goal is the third for Mesina this year, while Bonatto’s assist tally is now up to five.

CMU answered back just over two minutes later and the visitors, which held a slim 10-8 margin in shot attempts in the first half, went into intermission tied 1-1 with WPU.

The Eagles went ahead in the 50th minute, but the navy and gold found the answer in the 69th minute as they drew a foul in the box. Bonatto then stepped to the penalty line and drilled the try to knot things up at 2-2. The senior, who led the offense with three shots, now has eight goals this fall to lead William Penn.

Entering the waning minutes, both sides had numerous chances, but it remained a tied ball game. Unfortunately, Central Methodist would remain perfect in the Heart, scoring the eventual game-winner in the 83rd minute.

Austin Munoz (Sr., Harrisville, Utah, Sports Management) kept WPU close by recording eight saves in the setback.

“I am extremely proud of our players this evening,” Head Coach Jaymee Highcock said. “We went toe-to-toe with the best team in the NAIA and gave them a really good game. We played with great intensity and were unlucky to get nothing from the game. This defeat will make us more determined to reach our goals this season. We will now work hard and prepare to get back to winning ways in the conference.”

Next Up: Before returning to Heart play, WPU will travel to Ankeny Tuesday to face Faith Baptist Bible in non-conference play at 4 p.m.

Posted by on Oct 6 2019. Filed under College Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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