RIO GRANDE, Ohio. - No. 11 Indiana Wesleyan Men's Soccer took on No. 23 Rio Grande (Ohio) on Saturday evening and came away with 4-2 victory. The first half featured a commanding display from the Wildcats, as Mariano Chaves opened the scoring in the 11th minute, assisted by Taha Houssni. The momentum continued with Islam Houssni finding the net in the 21st minute after a setup from Diego Palma. With this goal, the duo of Palma to Islam Houssni has now scored in back-to-back matches. Taha Houssni added a third goal in the 29th minute, assisted by Kai Haskell, giving the Wildcats a decisive 3-0 lead at the end of the half. Goalkeeper Kadin Wolfe contributed with 2 crucial saves, denying Rio's attempts to score. The second period began with IWU asserting pressure early, as Cole Little's header was saved by URG just three minutes in. The Wildcats continued to challenge the Red Storm's defense, forcing many saves by the opposing goalkeeper. In the 69th minute, Isaiah Arredondo extended Indiana Wesleyan's lead to 4-0 for his first goal of the season. Despite a late rally from Rio Grande, which saw them score twice, the Wildcats maintained control to secure the win.



THE ESSENTIALS

• Location: Rio Grande, Ohio. | Evan E. Davis Field
• Records: IWU: 5-2-1 | URG: 1-3-3
• NAIA Top 25 Poll: IWU - #11 | URG - #23

WHAT HAPPENED

• The Wildcats took the lead when Mariano Chaves scored in the 11th minute assisted by Taha Houssni.
• Diego Palma assisted Islam Houssni for the second game in a row to extend the advantage to 2-0.
• The older Houssni brother, Taha, found the net in the 29th minute assisted by Kai Haskell.
• A little over halfway through the second half, Isaiah Arredondo scored his first goal of the campaign to make the score 4-0.
• Rio Grande gained momentum late and scored 2 goals in the final 10 minutes.

KEY WILDCATS

• Taha Houssni
  • 1 goal
  • 1 assist
• Kadin Wolfe:
  • 4 saves
• Islam Houssni 
  • 1 goal
  • 1 shot on goal

NOTABLE NUMBERS

• 7: Taha Houssni brings his point total on the season to 7 after scoring a goal and assisting another during the match.
• 2: This is IWU's second win over a ranked opponent this year; the first coming against Governors State.
• 10: The Wildcats got off 10 shots during the second half, landing 8 on frame. 

LOOKING FORWARD

• IWU begins Crossroads League play on September 24th at Spring Arbor at 7:00 PM.
• Links for video and stats are available at IWUWildcats.com.

FOLLOW THE WILDCATS

• Follow Athletics (@IWUWildcats): Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
• Follow Men's Soccer (@IWUSoccer): Twitter | Instagram | Facebook