No. 3 OKWU ends winless drought at JBU

For the first time in 38 years, Oklahoma Wesleyan was able to secure a result that it hadn’t been able to achieve, as the visiting No. 3 Eagles (3-1-1) tallied three goals in the first half to send the John Brown University men’s soccer team to its first setback at Alumni Field this season on Monday evening.

Sporting a tough 0-18-5 mark all time in Siloam Springs, OKWU nabbed its first win in program history at Alumni Field, a record that dated back to 1980.

Alberto Picchi scored a goal in each half, and Pedro Benito Ponomar added a pair of primary helpers as the Golden Eagles (3-31) were held scoreless for the first time this season.

OKWU’s Stefan Lukic opened the scoring in the 16th minute by flicking a beautiful volley just inside the far left post from 17 yards, earning the gamewinner in unassisted fashion.

The Eagles tallied twice just before in the 40th and 44th minutes, respectively. Picchi scored his first of the game after Ponomar forced a turnover and slid a pass into Picchi, who made no mistake by placing a strike into the bottom left corner of the goal, doubling the visitors’ lead. Just before half, Ponomar’s header back into the box was flicked on by Jorge Garcia Fernandez to Eric Rubio. Rubio slammed home his first of the year to run the score to 3-0.

After a lopsided first half, both teams attempted five shots in the second period. However, only OKWU was able to find the scoresheet again as Picchi posted his second of the night with a shot in close after Lukic slipped a pass into him in prime scoring position.

The final score could have been a little more difficult, if it wasn’t for senior Britt Wisener, who stopped Picchi’s bid for a hattrick in the 31st minute. Awarded a penalty kick, Picchi launched a strike towards the bottom right corner of the goal, but Wisener was equal to the task, earning his first career penalty kick save. With less than a minute to play, Rubio had a bid for his second of the match, but skyed his penalty kick chance, leaving the final score at 4-0.

The Wesleyan victory ends a four-match JBU unbeaten streak against OKWU, as the Golden Eagles had posted a 3-0-1 mark dating back to 2014, each time earning results against a top-10 Wesleyan side.

Wisener finished with four saves on seven shots against, while OKWU’s Dusan Djordjev needed just one save in his first clean sheet of the season.

The Golden Eagles will now rest until next week when it opens Sooner Athletic play at Mid-America Christian at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 25.