OWENSBORO, KY - The stars shone bright on a rainy Wednesday night at Panther field, as
Calum Newson and
Matteo Napoletano combined for four goals and an assist to propel Wesleyan to a 5-1 victory over crosstown rival Brescia.
This win gives the Panthers a 2-0-1 record, while Brescia drops to 0-4-0.
Wesleyan looked as though they would run away with it early, as
Haakon Torvbraaten scored a goal from six yards out thanks to a perfect pass from
Santiago Henrich. Brescia kept it together, though, and failed to allow a Panther goal for the rest of the half, despite five shots from the home side, including a
Jacob Boling laser that just hit the bottom left post. KWC went into the half up just 1-0.
The second half started much like the first, with Wesleyan scoring early. In just the 47th minute,
Matteo Napoletano took a pass from Henrich and put it perfectly pass Brescia's keeper to double up the Panther advantage. With the Panthers pressing, last season's All-American
Calum Newson got on the board, taking a great ball from
Xavier Angel and putting it past the keeper's outstretched arms to make it 3-0. Brescia managed to pull one back in the 72 minute, but the duo of Napoletano and Newson struck again, as Newson found Napoletano for his second goal of the game, making it 4-1. With the rain coming down hard in the 85th minute, Newson put the finishing touches on this win, slicing and dicing his way though five Brescia defenders to score a spectacular solo goal.
The Panthers out-shot the Bearcats 16-6 and held an 8-3 advantage in shots-on-goal. Wesleyan held a 7-3 lead on corner kicks, while the teams were even with 13 fouls apiece.
Calum Newson finished the evening with two goals and an assists, while
Matteo Napoletano came through with two goals. Going along with the "2" theme was
Santiago Henrich, who notched two assists.
Haakon Torvbraaten's goal with the first of his Panther career.
The Panthers won't have much time to rest on their laurels, as they travel to Rolla, Missouri on Friday to take on the Missouri S&T Miners. Gametime is set for 2 p.m. CT.
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