OMAHA, Neb. – Felipe da Silva gave the Omaha men's soccer team the lead early in the second half, but the Mavericks were felled by a pair of goals in the final minutes of regulation as Western Illinois came away with a 2-1 victory Saturday night at Caniglia Field. The home loss snaps UNO's 12-game home winning streak, which was the longest active streak in NCAA Division I.
Omaha is now 7-3-1 overall and 1-1-1 in Summit League play. Western Illinois improved to 4-7-1 overall and 1-2 in conference.
The Mavericks were the aggressors to start the game, taking it to the Leatherneck defense. Mark Moulton's header in the 3rd minute just went over the crossbar. Fazlo Alihodzic forced WIU goalkeeper Bruce Corrie to make a save in the 5th minute.
Western Illinois played a free kick into the goal box that found Jacob Bevan. Bevan's shot was saved by Joseph Ghitis. WIU forced Ghitis to make two more saves in the 11th and 16th minute.
Logan Mendez saw his shot off a Moulton corner kick saved by Corrie in the 22nd minute. Corrie again denied Mendez in the 37th minute.
The two teams went into the half tied 0-0. Omaha held a 7-5 advantage in shots in the first half, including a 4-3 advantage in shots on goal. There were a combined 23 fouls and four yellow cards issued in the opening 45 minutes of play.
The Mavericks continued to pressure WIU to open the second half. Mendez earned a corner kick in the 48th minute. His corner kick found Alihhodzic who blasted a shot towards the Leatherneck goal. Western Illinois was able to knock the ball towards the top of the penalty area. Felipe da Silva took the clearance out of the air and rifled a volley that was able to find its way into the back of the net for a 1-0 Omaha lead.
Moulton intercepted a pass and nearly doubled the score 23 seconds later, but Corrie was able to make the stop. WIU's Bevan nearly scored the equalizer less than a minute later, but Ghitis was up to the test.
Western Illinois leveled the score in the 84th minute. Diego Lopez's free kick found the head of Drew Whalen just inside the penalty area. Whalen was able to out jump the Maverick defense and nod a shot that floated over Ghitis who was rushing out to clear the ball.
Omaha seemed to retake the lead in the 86th minute. Mendez found separation between a pair of Leatherneck defenders and got off a shot that was bobbled by Corrie. The ball bounced to Fazlo Alihodzic who placed a onetime shot into the back of the net. Before the celebration could get started, Alihodzic's goal was disallowed due to an offsides infraction.
Moments later, WIU's Tyler Chavez played a long ball to Whalen who split the Omaha defense and tucked the game winner past Ghitis.
For the game, Omaha outshot Western Illinois 16-10 with a 7-6 advantage in shots on goal. The Mavericks had a 4-0 advantage in corner kicks. WIU was called for 25 fouls compared to 22 for UNO.
Ghitis made four saves in the loss, while Corrie made six saves for WIU.
After playing the two games at home, Omaha hits the road for a Summit League match-up at No. 9 Denver on Saturday, Oct. 17. Kickoff from CIBER Field is set for 8 p.m. (CT).
