Wheeling, W. Va. - Before the game on Wednesday night, the Wheeling University Men's Soccer team (1-13-3, 0-11-3) honored their seniors as part of their senior night ceremonies. The Cardinals took on their rivals from the hilltop as they took on West Liberty in the second edition of "The Battle for Wheeling." Both teams got on the board once throughout the night, but the game would end with the two teams in a stalemate at 1-1. 

Sam Clark, Richard Afolayanka, Harry Martin, Elim Babylon, and Andrew Bell were all honored prior to the match as they played in the final games of their collegiate careers. During their careers, they have helped build the program back up to prominence as they went from a few down years during the COVID-19 pandemic to making the Mountain East Conference (MEC) Tournament and getting to the semifinals during the 2022 season. All six seniors have had their impact felt in this program and five of those six seniors were able to impact last night's game. Clark led the way with three shots on the night, while Afolayanka took another shot to round out the senior stat line. 

Early in the game, the two teams went back and forth throughout the evening, and early on West Liberty held the shot advantage over Wheeling at 2-1. However, neither team was able to get a shot on net during the first 44 minutes of play as both defenses were forcing bad shots. In the 44th minute, West Liberty would put the first shot on net of the game as Zachary Forehand sent the ball towards the net, but a save by Austin Aaron would keep the game scoreless. The two teams entered the locker room with the score tied at the same 0-0 mark as both looked to break through. The Cardinals were outshot 7-2 during that first half and were looking to close the gap during the second half. 

As they came out for that second half, junior Salem Mwelwa would nearly get the Cardinals on the board in the 48th minute. He brought the ball up the field and sent a shot into the bottom of the net that was saved by West Liberty's Noah Underwood. After that shot, West Liberty would continue sending shots on net throughout the next 14 minutes until they broke through in the game's 59th minute. Rhys Lewis would find the way into the back of the net and gave West Liberty a 1-0 lead. The Cardinals would take over on offense during the next eight minutes, firing off three consecutive shots on goal. The third shot came off a pass from Johannes Haugerud as Jon-Michael Gordon was waiting in front of the net. 

The freshman was able to get the ball in the far corner of the net and sneak it past the goalkeeper to tie the game at 1-1. It was the fifth goal of the season for Gordon as he wrapped up what has been a strong freshman campaign. He got the ball back in the 75th minute and once again had a big scoring opportunity in front of the net. He took his shot, and this time Underwood would make the save. The Cardinals would get off two more shots on the night, courtesy of Clark and Afolayanka, but neither found the back of the net. In the end, the Cardinals would end the year in a stalemate as they tied West Liberty 1-1 to finish 1-13-3 overall and 0-11-3 in MEC play. 

The Wheeling University Men's Soccer team now heads into the offseason as they continue to grow and train for the 2024 season.