Box Score

Wheaton, Ill. - With a brand new system of play and 17 brand new players, Wheaton head men's soccer coach Mike Giuliano is busy sorting out who does what in all areas of his soccer team.

The young Thunder squad's first big test of the year came right away in the form of No. 13-ranked Ohio Wesleyan University, who spent much of the 2009 season ranked No. 1 in the country. In front of an energetic crowd at Joe Bean Stadium, Wheaton came through with opportunistic second-half offense to beat the Battling Bishops 2-1 on Saturday.

"Any one who watched us last night [vs. Rose-Hulman] would have been surprised by how much better we played tonight," Giuliano said. "You see how a talented team can come back from that the very next night. We showed real quality improvement."

The Thunder improved its record to 2-0. The No. 13-ranked Battling Bishops fall to 1-1 on the year.

The finale of the Bob Baptista Invitational got off to a breakneck start and rarely slowed throughout the night. The first half played very even as both teams were fast and physical, combining for 20 fouls in the half. Both sides battled for control of the midfield and got several good shots at goal.

The best early scoring chance of the second half came from Ohio Wesleyan off a corner kick at the 56 minute mark. Travis Wall did a no-look bicycle kick on a rebounded shot attempt. A Thunder defender prevented the goal by leaping and heading the ball off the crossbar and back into the box.

Moments after the close call, Wheaton struck a blow as Drew Golz and Chad Musgraves earned a double assist to Cameron Risma, who scored from within five yards at 56:44.

The euphoric crowed was soon silenced, however. Ohio Wesleyan All-American Tyler Wall capitalized on a broken play in the backfield and scored the equalizer inside the left post at 59:33.

Fifteen minutes later, the Thunder put themselves back up to stay. Midfielder Josh Clark fought through a defenseman with a deke on the left side of the box and headed to the goal line. His centering cross in front of the box eluded the diving goalkeeper, and after the ball ran past most of the players in the area, Musgraves pounced at the last moment for the open net goal.

Wheaton's defense kept its composure for the final 15 minutes and Seager made a diving save late to clinch the 2-1 victory.

"I'm impressed with our mental composure," Giuliano said. "They tied it within three minutes of us scoring, and that can take a lot out of you. But we kept at it and outshot them, which is real hard to do. I'm encouraged with how they handled adversity out there."

Seager earned the win in goal with three saves on the night. Paul Hendricks made six saves while taking the loss. Wheaton held a 13-12 advantage in shots while Ohio Wesleyan was 6-0 in corner kicks. The two teams combined for 35 fouls.

Wheaton resumes its schedule with a home match vs. No. 2-ranked Calvin College at 7:00 PM on Sept. 10.

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