EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – More than 1300 fans, including most of the SIUE class of 2027 was on hand Friday at Korte Stadium as SIUE men's soccer closed out its exhibition season with a 3-2 win over Indiana Wesleyan.
"I'm really happy with the group," SIUE Head Coach Cale Wassermann said. "Even when we were flustered tonight in a few moments, we bounced back from them."
Indiana Wesleyan opened the scoring in the 33rd minute but Will Harris answered for the Cougars with a free kick in the 42nd.
IWU took a lead seven minutes into the second half, but Mitchell Murphy and Pavel Dashin each scored in the final 25 minutes to push the Cougars over the top. Jake Karolczak and Nic Muench each added assists off the bench.
"The guys that came off the bench gave us a real big spark," Wassermann said. "The depth of competition in the squad is going to be a vital piece of the puzzle."
Wassermann also was complimentary of the atmosphere.
"We have some big games and some big crowds here, but to get this experience in preseason sets the tone and forces us to play in front of people with some more pressure. More than anything I want to say thank you to the fans, the students and staff that came out. It certainly helped push us over the top at the end of the game."
The Cougars open the regular season Thursday night at Central Arkansas.
