FULTON, Mo. — In the second half of a Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader, William Woods men's soccer (3-2, 1-1 Heart) defeated the visiting Culver-Stockton College Wildcats (0-5-1, 0-2 Heart) in a back-and-forth thriller at the North Campus Athletic Complex.
William Woods jumped on the offensive attack early in the matchup, testing the C-SC keeper five times in the first nine minutes of play. Francesco Dibra was the first Owl to find the back of the net, striking a scorching ball past the outstretched arms of August Mehr, the Wildcat keeper. Freshman Ace Davis assisted on the goal, recording his second assist of the season.
In the 40th minute, the referee showed a yellow card to Wildcat midfielder Cowan. Culver-Stockton used the shift in momentum to generate an offensive push, sneaking a shot past Owls keeper Martin Angulo in the 42nd minute to even the score before the break.
Woods had other plans, as just a minute later, sophomore Travis Luhning received an immaculate pass from Iddi Ramadhani in the attacking third. Luhning placed the shot just out of reach of the C-SC keeper, giving Woods a 2-1 advantage heading into halftime.
Both teams sent early runs toward the opposing keeper after the break, with each effort turned away by the keepers between the posts. The Owls were first to break the silence, as senior Miles Andrews netted his fourth goal of the season. Andrews won a one-on-one opportunity inside the box after sprinting past the Wildcat defensive line.
Thirty seconds later, a highly contested play inside the box resulted in a foul on WWU and another yellow card for Cowan, sending the Wildcats down a player. Despite the disadvantage, C-SC found the back of the net off a free kick, with Roscoe Cox hammering home a pass from Joe Cotton to bring the Wildcats within one at 3-2.
Three minutes later, the Owls found themselves playing with 10 men after a red card was shown to a WWU center back on a highly contested play in the back line. Even with the man advantage, Culver-Stockton found its equalizer in the 72nd minute. Again, the Wildcats capitalized on a set piece, finding an open attacker after the Owls' backline collapsed.
With the game tied at three, both sides looked to their benches for the deciding goal.
Culver-Stockton's Alessandro Omonte broke the deadlock in the 77th minute, converting another free-kick opportunity to give the Wildcats their third consecutive goal. Between the two goals, two more yellow cards were issued, one to each team, as physical play continued to escalate.
Facing a one-goal deficit, Woods searched for its equalizer. Eski Equisabel proved to be the hero off the bench, netting his second goal of the season in the 82nd minute after receiving a pass from Moritz Schafer inside the box.
On the ensuing run, C-SC found itself with a great opportunity to reclaim the lead, putting its leading attacker one-on-one with the Owls' freshman keeper. As the Wildcat attacker prepared to fire, the whistle blew, with the assistant referee signaling an offside call and returning possession to William Woods.
With the newfound momentum, Schafer delivered a header into the box, where Equisabel fired a shot with his right foot past the Wildcat keeper and into the back of the net.
The score would prove final, as William Woods held on for a 5-4 victory in the back-and-forth affair.
In total, 10 cards were shown between the two teams, while the lead changed seven times throughout the contest. A total of 39 shots were fired, with Angulo collecting three saves for the Owls. Mehr kept the Wildcats within striking distance, recording 14 saves in the contest.
The Owls return to the pitch this weekend with a matchup against the Missouri Valley Vikings in Marshall, Mo.
