WPU Locks Up Home Play-In Game with OT Win Over Mount Mercy

William Penn University Athletics

by Wade Steinlage

Oskaloosa–Joey Messina (So., New London, Wis., Information Technology) had just one shot on goal, but he made it count as he led the Statesmen men’s soccer team to a 1-0 overtime win over Mount Mercy in Heart of America Athletic Conference action Wednesday.

Messina tallied his third score of the fall 3:54 into the first overtime. Following a foul on Mount Mercy on WPU’s side of the pitch, goalkeeper Guillermo Pineda (Fr., Madrid, Spain, Business Management & Communications) sent a long kick well past the half line and Messina tracked it down. He dribbled it once and then delivered a laser past the MMU keeper for the winner.

With the triumph, William Penn (10-6-1, 6-5-1 Heart), which was outshot 17-13 by Mount Mercy (7-9, 4-7 Heart), secured a home game for Tuesday’s Heart Tournament play-in round. Saturday’s home matchup against Culver-Stockton (7:30 p.m. start) will determine if the Statesmen are the #7 or #8 seed. Saturday’s contest is also Senior Night; the 2017 senior class will be recognized before the game.

Diego Navarro (Fr., Madrid, Spain, Mechanical Engineering) guided the victors with five shots, while Pineda stopped eight Mustang attempts. The shutout is the first of Pineda’s career.

The victory gets the navy and gold to double digits for the first time since 2013 and only the fifth time in program history.

“This was a good win for us against a good Mount Mercy team,” Head Coach Jaymee Highcock said. “We made the win a little harder than it should have been, but fortunately came out on top in the end. We will now look to finish the regular season with a big win for our seniors on Saturday.”