MACOMB, Ill. – Emmanuel Hamzat scored the game-tying goal and assisted on the game-winner to help Omaha dispatch Western Illinois, 2-1, on Saturday at John MacKenzie Alumni Field.
With the win, the Mavericks improved to 8-4-3 (4-0 Summit League) on the year, while the Leathernecks dropped to 6-7-1 (2-2 Summit League).
Western Illinois netted the match's first goal in the 10th minute. Jacob Bevans one-timed a rebound past Joseph Ghitis to put the Leathernecks up 1-0.
Hamzat put the Mavericks on the board in the 28th minute with a header off Fazlo Alihodzic's free kick. The goal was Hamzat's sixth of the season and third of the week.
Elvir Ibisevic broke the tie at the 36-minute mark. Joel Kazhila sent his throw-in to the feet of Hamzat who beat a pair of defenders and sent a cross into the penalty area. Ibisevic got a head on the cross and beat Tim Hansen to the near post for the 2-1 lead.
Western Illinois had a 16-6 lead in shots, while both teams had five shots on goal, and Omaha had a 9-2 edge in corner kicks.
Hamzat and Ibisevic both had a team-best two shots, while Alihodzic and Seth Rinderknecht each had one shot. Joseph Ghitis logged all 90 minutes in goal and picked up four saves.
Omaha returns to action for its final regular-season home game on Saturday, Oct. 29, hosting No. 5 Denver at 2 p.m. and UNO will honor its four seniors with postgame festivities. Links to live stats, audio, and video will be available on OMavs.com.
Scoring Summary
Omaha 2 0 - 2
Western Illinois 1 0 - 1
Individual Scoring
Jacob Bevan (WIU) at 8:02 (unassisted)
Emmanuel Hamzat (Omaha) at 27:01 (Fazlo Alihodzic)
Elvir Ibisevic (Omaha) at 35:47 (Emmanuel Hamzat)
Goalkeeper Saves
Joseph Ghitis (Omaha) – 4
Tim Hansen (WIU) – 2
