SILOAM SPRINGS, Ark. -- No. 1 Oklahoma Wesleyan scored three times in a 17-minute span during the first half and handed the No. 13 John Brown University men's soccer team its first loss of the campaign, defeating the Golden Eagles 4-0 on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 12) at Alumni Field.
John Brown (4-1-0) entered the matchup unbeaten through four matches, but the visitors established control early, holding the Golden Eagles to one shot while producing seven of its own over the opening 45 minutes.
The Blue and Gold have now gone winless in its last six versus OKWU.
Ryunsokue Masuzuka broke the scoreless tie at 16:19 with his third goal of the season. Ronardo Burgher doubled the advantage just over nine minutes later before Alfonso Obregon Macias pushed the margin to 3-0 at 33:21 off an Ognjen Pilic assist.
Junior goalkeeper Juan Almanza made two saves during the opening half, including stops on Eguzki Hashimoto and Pilic. Oklahoma Wesleyan (3-0-1) came close to adding another before the break when Hashimoto struck the post in the 37th minute.
John Brown's attack responded immediately after the interval, as sophomore Constantin Bauer had consecutive attempts blocked in the 53rd and 54th minutes before senior Gabriel Cabrera sent another opportunity high, giving the Golden Eagles three shots in a span of 36 seconds after managing just one during the entire first half.
The task became more difficult at 54:30 when the hosts were forced to play the final 35:30 with 10 men. Even shorthanded, however, the Golden Eagles continued to generate chances.
Freshman Wyatt Marksberry forced Oklahoma Wesleyan goalkeeper Marko Rodic into a save in the 65th minute, and junior Andres Pereira put another shot on frame in the 75th. Marksberry tested Rodic again in the 88th before freshman Kevin Acosta's header required the goalkeeper's fourth save in the 89th minute.
Oklahoma Wesleyan added its final goal in the 71st minute when Carter Ligi converted a Colon Valeriano assist, outmaneuvering Almanza at the top of the box.
John Brown finished with eight of its nine total shots in the second half and outshot Oklahoma Wesleyan 8-5 after halftime despite playing more than a third of the match down a man.
OKWU held a 12-9 advantage in total shots and put six on goal to John Brown's four. The visitors also finished with a 5-2 edge in corner kicks.
Rodic stopped all four John Brown shots on goal to record the clean sheet. Almanza (2-1-0) made two saves on six chances in the setback.
The Golden Eagles will take on Columbia (Mo.) next at Alumni Field, with kickoff scheduled for 5 p.m. The clash will be carried live on the Urban Edge Network and the SAC Sports Network.
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