CARMEL, Ind. – Asher Ozuzu scored early in the second half and the Milwaukee men's soccer team picked up a 1-1 draw against IUPUI Saturday afternoon at Carmel High School's Murray Stadium.
 
The Panthers (4-8-4, 2-4-2 Horizon League) needed a result against a Jaguars (6-6-4, 4-2-2 Horizon League) team that came into the contest in second place in the conference standings to keep their postseason hopes alive.
 
A defensive battle throughout, the MKE offense came out more aggressive in the second half, recording a trio of shots while forcing two tough saves in a stretch between the 50^th and 53^rd minutes, including a near-goal from Quinn Rechner off a corner kick that was stopped from going in by a team save.
 
Ozuzu then opened the scoring next, netting his fourth goal of the season at the 61:03 mark to make it 1-0 following a takeaway in the defensive third and finishing with an impressive strike.
 
Ozuzu actually had the next four Milwaukee shot attempts spread out over the following 20 minutes, with a near-goal in the 82nd minute that would have made it a new game after the Jags found the equalizer on a header at the 78:12 mark.
 
The Panther defense held strong in a scoreless first half, allowing eight shots overall in the opening 45 minutes of action, but seeing Daniel Ibarra need just one save to get it to intermission at 0-0.
 
Milwaukee recorded four shots in the opening frame, with the only on-target attempt coming in the form of a penalty kick that was saved in the 14^th minute.
 
For the day, the home team earned advantages of 19-13 in total shots, with MKE the slight 5-4 edge in shots on goal. The Jags also grabbed the 4-3 margin on corner kicks and the 55/45 majority on overall possession. For the Panthers, Ozuzu led the way with six total shots as well as three shots on goal. Ibarra finished with three saves on the afternoon.
 
Milwaukee will have to see how the results from across the rest of the league went today to see where they stand in the race for a shot at the postseason. The team has one contest left, welcoming Green Bay Wednesday to Engelmann Stadium. Game time against the Phoenix will be in the afternoon, with the teams playing for the "Chancellor's Cup" kicking off at 1 p.m.