Wheaton, Ill. -- The Thunder men's soccer team began the 2025 season and this year's Bob Baptista Invitational in exciting fashion on Friday night, as Wheaton put four goals past Chapman University in a high-octane victory. Wheaton is hosting Chapman, Colorado College, and DePauw University this weekend for its annual four-team curtain-raiser, and tonight's matchup was only the second time that the Thunder and the California-based Panthers have ever met. Last year's contest between the two sides on the West Coast ended in a 1-1 tie, but Friday's game was more action-packed and decisive as Wheaton took its chances with ruthless efficiency to the delight of a sizable Joe Bean Stadium crowd. The attacking duo of Luke Vander Kolk and Kyle Johnson ran the show this evening, with each player scoring two goals and tallying three combined assists in a memorable outing. Colorado College cruised past DePauw in Friday's first fixture, and Wheaton will meet the former in a de-facto championship game on Saturday night to close out the Invitational.

The home side raced out of the gates this evening, with the Thunder earning two corner kicks in the opening four minutes and needing just six and a half minutes to start the scoring. Garrett Belcher launched a long throw-in from the left sideline into the path of Vander Kolk, who spun out of a challenge and quickly fed a lovely through-ball for Johnson to run onto at the top of the Chapman box. The senior striker continued his fine form from 2024 by taking one touch to set himself up before driving in a low strike past the out-rushing goalkeeper to put Wheaton ahead. (VIDEO) The cross-country visitors responded well to this early setback, posting their first shot on target three minutes later and winning a pair of corners. But the Thunder doubled their lead before the Panthers could find a breakthrough of their own. Just before the 25-minute mark of the opening half, Wheaton brought down a bouncing ball in the center circle and were once again put clean through on goal, as Vander Kolk went from provider to finisher thanks to a pinpoint pass from junior transfer Ashur Eshw. His fellow third-year Vander Kolk made a perfectly-angled run to catch up to the ball and kept his composure to slip his shot between the legs of the stranded Chapman shotstopper and extend Wheaton's advantage on the scoreboard. (VIDEO)
The guests responded proactively once again, however, and buried a rebounded cross eight minutes later to halve the deficit and put the Thunder's opening night celebrations on hold heading into halftime.

This goal gave the Panthers an obvious lift, and the away side began the next 45-minute period on top, firing off four attempts and two corner kicks before allowing Wheaton its first sight of goal in the second half. But the Thunder steadied the ship on 60 minutes and slowed the pace of the game down in an effort to protect their lead. The next 15 minutes were comparatively sleepy, until Johnson and Vander Kolk combined again on the counterattack to redouble Wheaton's lead and effectively seal the victory. The senior gathered the ball at the midfield line and beat two defenders for pace down the left wing, attracting attention away from his junior teammate who ran into the Chapman penalty area unopposed. Johnson then unselfishly slid a horizontal pass across the box for Vander Kolk to bury in the lower left corner with a confident first-time finish. (VIDEO) Gaps started to appear in the Panther defense, and Vander Kolk came close to bagging his first hat-trick for Wheaton as the hosts continued to press forward. Johnson added the final flourish to an impressive opening-night display in the 83rd minute when he and Vander Kolk reversed roles, as the junior played a ball from the left flank to the near post and a wide open Johnson immediately pushed it in the bottom left corner to collect his second strike of the evening, both assisted by Vander Kolk. (VIDEO)
The same Chapman goalscorer who netted in the first half secured a brace of his own with a tidy finish in the 87th minute, but it was too late for any serious comeback attempt, and the Thunder were able to enjoy a successful first outing of 2025 on home turf.

The full match statistics show a relatively even contest, with both sides attempting 13 shots, both keepers making two saves, and Wheaton only earning more corner kicks and ball possession by narrow margins. But the hosts' clinical finishing made the difference on Friday, as the Thunder buried four of their six shots on target while Chapman managed two goals from just four attempts on frame. There were 25 total fouls called and three yellow cards handed out in tonight's scrappy match that never boiled over into serious foul play.

Vander Kolk had his best performance in a Wheaton uniform to date this evening, racking up two goals, two assists, six points, and a game-high four shots on target in a headline outing. Johnson converted both of his efforts on target to match his junior strike partner on two goals and also earned an assist to lead by example as the Thunder's captain on the night. The two forwards accounted for all six of their team's shots on goal, while Belcher, Eshw, and Timmy Jones each registered an assist in the victory.

The Thunder opened their new campaign with a statement performance on Friday, but the squad will not have much time to celebrate the result, as a talented Colorado College side awaits them on Saturday evening. The Tigers, ranked 20th in the country in the 2025 United Soccer Coaches Division III Pre-season Poll, notched a comfortable 3-0 victory over DePauw in the first game of the invite and will provide a challenge to a Thunder team hoping to go two-for-two at home this weekend. Wheaton and Colorado College are set to meet at 7 PM at Bean Stadium, with Chapman and DePauw rounding out their Invitational stay immediately beforehand in a 4:30 kickoff.