MILWAUKEE - Reid Stevenson's penalty kick goal in the 48^th minute made the score 5-0 and the Milwaukee men's soccer team fended off a late rally to defeat Dayton by a final score of 5-3 Saturday afternoon at Engelmann Stadium.
 
The Panthers scored four first-half goals in a span of 20 minutes to build the big lead in the final exhibition contest of the 2017 season. The Flyers mounted a late rally, scoring twice in the final five-plus minutes to make the final score closer than it appeared.
 
"I though the first 55 minutes was really good soccer," Milwaukee head coach Kris Kelderman said. "The guys have been working really hard in preseason and they have been gelling a little more each day. I was really pleased with the performance."
 
It took 18-plus minutes of scoreless soccer before UWM broke through, with Francesco Saporito sending home a cross at the 18:19 mark to open the floodgates.
 
"First 15-20 minutes was pretty even," Kelderman said. "Once we got that first goal, four more came – and some really nice goals – so that is promising."
 
Vuk Latinovich then netted a free kick from the wing without any help in the 22^nd and proceeded to set up Henrik Fennefoss with a header goal off a corner kick in the 36^th minute.
 
Goalkeeper Freddy Lorenzen got in on the action too. In addition to the five saves he made in his nearly 60 minutes of action, his long ball in the 39^th minute turned into an assist when Nick Moon ran onto it three-fourths of the way down the field to finish and make it 4-0 at the 38:56 mark.
 
Stevenson earned the PK after getting taken down in the box on a foul, rifling home the spot kick at the 47:57 mark.
 
Kelderman made mass substitutions the rest of the way. Over the final 20-plus minutes of the contest, he had eight freshmen on the field. Overall, 23 different players saw action, with each playing at least 19 minutes.
 
Dayton broke up the shutout in the 73^rd minute and then netted two more before the final horn.
 
Milwaukee led the shot count at 23-to-21, with a 15-to-6 advantage in the first half. Dayton had seven of the 12 corner kicks. Latinovich and Moon each finished with one goal and one assist. Stevenson and Fennefoss recorded a team-high four shots each – with Fennefoss nearly adding another goal on a shot off the post in the 17^th minute.
 
Lorenzen played 59:26 of the match (5 saves), with Greg Baxa coming on in relief for the final 30:34, recording a pair of stops.
 
Up next is the regular-season opener, coming Friday against Western Illinois. The game is at Engelmann Stadium and will start at 7 p.m.