MARION, Ind. - No. 16-seed Indiana Wesleyan men's soccer had a great team performance in the second round of the NAIA National Championship after defeating Union College 2-0. Senior Giuseppe Santacroce lifted the Wildcats over the Bulldogs with both goals in the contest. The Wildcats maintained a clean sheet and secured the shutout with a 2-0 scoreline at the final whistle. IWU punches their ticket to the Round of 16 for the first time since 2015.

 

THE ESSENTIALS

• Location: Marion, Ind. | IWU Soccer Field
• Records: IWU: 13-3-4 | Union: 15-3-2
• NAIA Seeding: IWU - #16 | Union - Unseeded

WHAT HAPPENED

• Indiana Wesleyan capitalized first with a goal from Giuseppe Santacroce after a cross from Cole Little found Santacroce for a header in the 33rd minute.
• Giuseppe Santacroce doubled his scoring and the team lead in the 41st minute after Guzman Trigo weaved through the UC defense and found him in the center of the box. 

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• 2: Scoring on the double, Giuseppe Santacroce led the Wildcats to victory after strong passing from the IWU attack.
• 3: Aaron Carr picked up 3 key saves in the second half to secure the shutout.

CARPENTER PERSPECTIVE

• "Coming from a tough last couple of games, the boys put together a full ninety minutes of quality play, and it paid off," said Jaxson Carpenter. "We're looking forward to continuing to prove ourselves in the Round of 16. God has been faithful this season, and we're continuing to see Him work in powerful ways!"

LOOKING FORWARD

• IWU advances to play Bellevue University in the NAIA Round of 16 in Wichita, Kansas on Nov. 27
• Links for video and stats will be available at IWUWildcats.com.

FOLLOW THE WILDCATS

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