MILWAUKEE – Three second-half goals sent the Milwaukee men's soccer team to an impressive 3-1 victory over IU Indianapolis on "Senior Night" Friday evening at Engelmann Stadium.
 
The Panthers (8-4-4, 4-3-1 Horizon League) picked up the big comeback win over the Jaguars (5-8-3, 2-5-1 Horizon League) to not only finish off an unbeaten home season at 5-0-3, but also clinch a spot in the upcoming Horizon League Tournament.
 
"We had a couple of goals in mind coming into this game, and one was staying undefeated at home and we did that tonight," head coach Kris Kelderman said. "We have been playing well the past couple of games and believed in ourselves and what we are doing and it finally came for us. Momentum is huge in soccer and all we needed was that first goal. I think you could tell … the energy rose, the crowd got into it a little more, and we kept getting chances. I will take the result."
 
Down, 1-0, at the break following a 31^st minute goal by the visitors, Milwaukee stayed the course and went to work after intermission.
 
"I thought we were playing pretty well in the first half but didn't have anything to show for it on the scoreboard," Kelderman said. "They got a goal on us but at halftime, we regrouped, and just said 'stay the course' and believed in ourselves because we were playing well."
 
The team finally broke through in the 58^th minute when Alejandro Martinez netted his Horizon-League leading ninth goal of the campaign. The Jags keeper stopped the original attempt, but Martinez gathered the rebound, took one touch to open up some space, and went high to make it a new game at 1-1 at the 57:01 mark.
 
The MKE offense kept up the pressure and found the go-ahead strike in the 75^th minute. David Cox started the progression, carrying the ball deep into IU Indy territory. His pass into the box found a charging Bienvenu Djunga who did the rest, finishing brilliantly for his third of the season and the 2-1 lead at the 74:21 mark.
 
They looked to add on in the 79^th minute, but a brilliant stop kept Ryan Berghauer's header – off a free kick from Pascal Leatherman – from finding the back of the net. Milwaukee then dodged a bullet in the 83^rd minute, seeing a Jaguar shot sent off the post to keep it at 2-1.
 
The team then came through with an insurance goal in the closing minute, started with a brilliant save from Leatherman near the sideline to retain possession. His pass found Mesfin Roda, who did the rest. Roda nutmegged the nearest defender and charged towards goal, eventually sending a shot that was deflected off a final defender and into the net for his fifth of the season at the 89:30 mark.
 
For the game, the visitors ended up posting advantages of 19-14 in shots and 3-1 in corner kicks, yet MKE grabbed the 10-8 in shots on goal. Martinez paced the offense with four shots, with Roda finishing with three. In net, Daniel Ibarra was credited with seven saves, just one off his season high.
 
The program celebrated the senior class of Colin Mullen, Matthew Toolan, Stu Sain, Bienvenu Djunga, Daiki Kumakawa, Alan Lopez, Raul Medina, David Cox, and Daniel Ibarra in a pregame ceremony.
 
"We have nine seniors and had a great showing and representation from the families," Kelderman said. "We had people coming from Japan, from Ireland, from Spain … it's pretty cool to see and it means a lot to these guys. So to have a performance like this and get a result with what was on the line was pretty special."
 
Up next, the Panthers will wrap up the regular-season schedule heading to Green Bay for the "Chancellor's Cup" next week Tuesday in a matinee showdown scheduled to kick off at 1 p.m.