FULTON, Mo. – The William Woods University men's soccer team looks to keep the winning momentum going, as the team heads into Wednesday night's game against American Midwest Conference (AMC) rival, Columbia College. Kick-off is set for 7:00 p.m. at Firley Field.

The Owls (8-1-1: 3-1 AMC) are coming off a thriller 1-0 (2OT) victory over Missouri Baptist University, last Tuesday night. WWU set the high paced tone for a hard fought match-up, as the team amassed 27 shots on the night, while holding the Spartans to just four.

The Owls stepped up to the challenge, while the AMC match-up was a very physical and intense game, as there were a total of 38 fouls in the game, 18 of which came in the second half alone.

At the 11^th minute of play, a costly foul on Missouri Baptist set up a penalty kick for WWU. Senior, Alan Matthew, would take the penalty kick for the Owls, as he sent the ball towards the left corner of the goal but was saved by a diving, Spartan goaltender, John Schnurbusch, keeping the match-up 0-0.

At the end of the first half, the score would remain the same, however, it was a hard task for the visiting Spartans, as WWU tallied 12 shots in the first 45:00 minutes of play.  

The offensive pressure for WWU continued to be aggressive in the second half, as an MBU player received a red card at the 58:32 mark, putting the Spartans down a player for the rest of the game. This would give the Owls an advantage during the final frame, however, the team couldn't respond with the game winning goal and at the end of regulation it was tied 1-1.

In the first overtime, the Owls were outshot by one, but neither team could score a goal, so extra time was needed in double overtime.

Only .22 seconds into the second OT, senior Jacob Hawes, got a pass from teammate Sebastian Burich and the senior, buried the ball past Spartans goalkeeper, ending the game with a thriller 1-0 victory for WWU.

The Owls were lead in the shot department by Alex Severino and Burinch, who each tallied four shots on the night. Hawes, recorded the game-winning goal and also added three shots.

In the net, Ivan Monterrubio, got his first start of the season, collecting one save on the night. Monterrubio, a Barcelona, Spain native, also recorded his first career win and shutout, as he helped the Owls to a 1-0 victory.

On the season, the Owls have recorded six shutouts and have outscored its opponents 26-5.

Alex Severino and Jacob Hawes leads the team offensively, as both have recorded five goals and 25 shots on the season, while sophomore, Anthony Moscatello is second on team in goals with four and Matthew has contributed three goals, all from the penalty spot.

Senior, Paulo Conelian leads the team with eight assists, which currently ranks the senior first in the AMC and fourth in the NAIA. Fellow senior teammate, Luca Stroeter, is second on the team, handing out four assists on the season.

The Owls will be looking for redemption against Columbia College, as WWU suffered a tough 2-1 (2OT) loss against the Cougars last year.

CC returns forward, Marko Paunovic, who ended the 2013 season first on the team in assists (seven) and second on the team in goals (eight), while also tallying 23 points on the year.

The Cougars are currently tied with WWU in third place in AMC standings with a conference record of 3-1 and an overall record of 5-3-1.

On the season, Vadim Cojocov and Paunovic lead the Cougars offensively, as they both have recorded four goals apiece. Cojocov, a Finglas, Dublin (Ireland) native, also leads the team in shots (20) and is second on the team in points with eight, which is right behind teammate Paunovic (nine).

In goal, the duo of Daniel Ainsworth and Brady Wulff have combined to play 830:00 minutes in net, allowing seven goals, made 41 saves and both earning a goals against average under 1.00.

Fans check back on wwuowls.com for results and recap of Wednesday night's game.  

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