Box Score I Box Score (.html) I Box Score (.pdf) I Isang Jacob Postgame I Kyle Hyland Postgame

INDIANAPOLIS - Senior Kyle Hyland scored twice and the defense hung strong as the IUPUI men's soccer team opened Summit League play with a 2-1 win over Eastern Illinois at Michael A. Carroll Stadium on a chilly Saturday (Sept. 22) night. The win was IUPUI's second in a row and upped the Jaguars record to 4-1 on the home turf this season.

"I think we fought," IUPUI head coach Isang Jacob said. "It's a tough conference and nothing's going to be given to anybody and you've got to respect every team. Eastern Illinois is a good team and we knew that they're very strong in their counter. We did a good job of keeping the win."

After dominating possession for the majority of the first half, IUPUI (4-6-1, 1-0 Summit) didn't get on the board until the 43rd minute when Hyland scored on a penalty kick. Senior Ryan Robinson earned the PK opportunity when he carried the ball to the endline and has his cross knocked down by the hand of EIU's Jake Plant inside the penalty area. On the PK chance, Hyland calmly rolled a shot inside the right post in the opposite direction of EIU goalie Garrett Creasor's diving attempt.

IUPUI could have had three first half goals, but freshman Olayode Ahmed had a shot hit the right post in the 24th minute and Michael Sass put a brilliant header on frame in the 36th minute, only to see it cleared off the line by an EIU defender.

The Jaguars wasted little time in adding insurance in the second half when Hyland deposited his eighth goal of the year in the 52nd minute. Freshman Clint Hoffar sent a long throw-in deep inside the 18-yard box and Hyland laced a header into the open net with Creasor beaten off his back line.

"The way we play now puts him in the right position (to score goals)," Jacob said. "He's worked hard. You've got to give him credit. He works hard in practice and I think it's paying off. He wants it and he's determined. His goal is to continue to play and to do the best he can to keep this team winning."

"It's just heart and fight," Hyland said of the team's effort. "Everyone played a part. It's not just me scoring. It's a team type of thing, not just me as an individual. I might be the last person to touch it, but I wouldn't get the ball if nobody else played it."

IUPUI continued to push forward for a third goal, but EIU (2-7, 0-1 Summit) began tipping the field in their favor as the game wore on. In the 69th minute, the Panthers cut the lead in half on a nifty combination between Garet Christianson and Will Butler. Butler worked the ball up the left sideline before bending a cross into the teeth of the Jaguars' back line. However, Christianson soared through the pack and angled a driven header past freshman goalkeeper Eduardo Cortes for his first goal of the year.

Even as EIU continued to maintain possession on IUPUI's half of the field, the Panthers struggled to get quality chances against the Jags' defense. Cortes' only save of the night came on a Jake Brillhart header in the 77th minute as the rookie earned his fourth win of the season.

IUPUI finished with a 23-16 shot advantage, with the Jaguars' back line doing a strong defensive job against the EIU attack. Hyland closed with a career-high 10 shot attempts while his eight goals are the most by an IUPUI player since Vangel Nacovski scored nine in 2007. It was his second multi-goal game of the season and six of his eight goals have come on the home turf.

"I think we did a good job and then we got too excited," Jacob said. "Our backs started pushing way too high and we got burned. That's how the goal came in. We were chasing another goal instead of just protecting and keeping the integrity of the back four. Overall we did a good job.

"We're young in the back. We've got all four new backs from last year, three of which are freshmen."

In all, IUPUI started seven freshmen on Saturday.

The Jaguars will return to non-conference action on Tuesday, Sept. 25 when Jacob's squad heads north to take on Western Michigan at 5:00 p.m. in Kalamazoo.