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Men’s Soccer Treks to Tangle With Sixth-Ranked North Park

Match scheduled for 7:30 p.m. inside Holmgren Athletic Complex

10/14/2022 12:00:00 PM

BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - With the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin slate winding down, the Illinois Wesleyan University men's soccer team will make the trek to Chicago for a tough CCIW matchup against sixth-ranked North Park University. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. inside of Holmgren Athletic Complex on the campus of NPU. The match will serve as the nightcap of a doubleheader with the IWU women's soccer team who is set to take on NPU at 5 p.m.

Entering the clash, the Green and White owns an overall record of 5-6-2 (2-3 CCIW), while sitting in a tie for sixth in the conference standings. On the flip side, the Vikings have earned a 10-1-1 (3-0-1 CCIW) record, good for a tie atop the CCIW standings with No. 24 North Central.

Saturday's showdown, under the lights, will mark the 37th all-time meeting between the two programs. The Vikings lead the all-time series, 26-8-2, in a rivalry that commenced during the 1988 campaign. The Green and White is currently on an 11-match losing skid against NPU. The two teams last met on Sept. 25 of last year that saw a 4-1 North Park victory. IWU's last victory came on Nov. 1, 2008 via a 2-0 decision that saw both goals in the second 45.

The Titans last took to the pitch Wednesday, Oct. 12 against the Big Blue from Millikin. Two first half goals from junior Brody Seaton (Dunlap, Ill.-Peoria Notre Dame) and sophomore Declan Nugent (Naperville, Ill.-Neuqua Valley) propelled the team to a much needed 2-1 victory to grab the program's second CCIW win of the year.

NPU traveled to Naperville for a nationally ranked showdown with the No. 24 Cardinals, Wednesday, Oct. 12 in the teams last action. NCC raced out to a fourth minute lead and clung onto the slim lead heading into the halftime intermission. NPU notched the equalizer in the 84th minute to push the score to two apiece. The match ended in a 2-2 draw as the Vikings notched 19 shots, compared to NCC's 13.

For conference contests only, the Titans sit in sixth in the CCIW with an average of 11.60 shots per contest, for a total of 58 conference shots. Additionally, IWU checks in with eight conference tallies, with an average of 1.60 per game, which is also good for sixth in the conference rankings.

Individually, Nugent is currently sitting in a tie for third with his lone game-winning goal that was earned against Millikin on Wednesday.

Junior Gavin Smith (Seattle, Wash.-Eastside Preparatory School) tops the Titans with his 11 points and 12 shots on goal. Fellow junior Sasha Tylnyy (Wheeling, Ill.-Buffalo Grove) has accumulated eights points as he has tallied four goals on the year. Seaton's six points are good for third-best on the team as the Dunlap, Ill. native has tallied a trio of goals.

Freshman goalkeeper Sam Kedzior (Cary, Ill.-Cary Grove), who has notched six straight starts between the posts for the Green and White, owns an overall record of 2-3-1 in his 540 minutes of action.

Freshman Kalabi Kamau (Alpharetta, Ga.-Marist School) and sophomore Justin Hart (Morton, Ill.-Morton) are the only two players who have earned a start in all 13 matches this season.

Live stats for the match can be found here, while the live video link can be accessed by clicking here.

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