BANNOCKBURN, Ill. --- The TIU men's soccer team faced a critical test on Tuesday afternoon as they hosted the four-time defending Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) champion Cardinal Stritch Wolves in conference action. Coming off a 2-1 loss on Saturday at home to Trinity Christian, the Trojans looked to turn around their recent string of losses with a strong performance against a strong CSU team.

Wednesday's match saw the Trojans on the defensive as the Wolves dominated possession. However, thanks to solid defense, TIU was able to keep the scoresheet blank throughout the first half, despite missing out on a few opportunities of their own to score. Cardinal Stritch would break through in the 49th minute as Andres Sesma scored on a shot just out of reach for Trinity goalkeeper Armin Mahmutovic. 

The Trojans would pressure CSU's keeper Liam Downey in the following minutes but wouldn't be able to slip the ball past as action on the field became highly physical. The Wolves would strike again in the 73rd minute as Kevin Herrera scored to give CSU a 2-0 lead, which they would carry to the final horn.

ADDITIONAL GAME NOTES

• TIU falls to 3-11 all-time against the Wolves following Wednesday's loss. Cardinal Stritch has now won 11 of the previous 12 meetings.

• Wednesday's shutout loss was Trinity's fifth of the season. The Trojans were shutout six times during the shortened, postponed 2020 season last spring.

• Falling to 1-9-0, the Trojans are off to their worst ten match start since 2009, when TIU lost their first ten in a row.

• Nine total yellow cards were distributed in Wednesday's match (five against CSU, four on TIU), tied for the most in a single-match that TIU has played in this season. Nine cards were handed down in TIU's Sept. 13 match at Viterbo (WI).  

• Josiah Fuchs led the Trinity offense with three shot attempts, two of which were on goal. Jonny Mueller also took two shots on goal attempts.

• With his two shots on goal, Fuchs passed Erik Yamane (2012-15) for fourth on the program's all-time shots on goal list with 48.

• Freshman goalkeeper Armin Mahmutovic recorded a career-high eight saves in Wednesday's loss.

• Xavier Brown's two shots give him 61 on his career, moving him past Travis Bacon (2007-08) and Francesco De Felice (2014-18) for seventh most in program history.

• Brown also passed Bacon for fifth in the team's shots on goal rankings, increasing his career total to 34 with one shot on goal today.

UP NEXT

The Trojans (1-9-0) will return to action on Saturday, October 2 as they visit the Roosevelt University Lakers in nearby Arlington Heights. Kickoff is scheduled for 11:00am CST at Morris Field, with the game being streamed LIVE on the Laker Sports Network.
 

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Trinity International University is a comprehensive, national university affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America and located in Bannockburn, Illinois, 25 miles north of Chicago. TIU educates men and women to engage in God's redemptive work in the world by cultivating academic excellence, Christian faithfulness and lifelong learning.