FORT WAYNE, Ind. - The IUPUI men's soccer team opened Summit League play on a sour note at Fort Wayne on Saturday night (Sept. 27), dropping a 4-0 decision to the host Mastodons at Hefner Soccer Complex. IPFW's Austin West posted a hat trick in the game's first 27 minutes and Randy Maksimik added late insurance to polish off the Jaguars. 

IUPUI dipped to 2-5 and 0-1 in The Summit while Fort Wayne improved to 3-3-3 overall and 1-0 in league play. 

"IPFW was the better team in every aspect tonight. They beat us to every ball and they just wanted it more. They played to win and we did not and that was the story," IUPUI Head Coach Isang Jacob said. "It's disappointing. 

"We showed a bit of character in how we came out in the second half, but there was no excuse for it." 

Austin West was the story of the night, breaking open the scoring in the game's 15th minute with a long run up the left side before he beat Christian Lomeli with a shot to the right post. Just less than seven minutes later, he made it 2-0 with a shot, once again inside the right post. He capped the hat trick with a free kick in the 27th minute, giving the hosts an insurmountable lead. 

West came in as IPFW's team leader in shots for the year, but had just three career goals prior to Saturday's hat trick. 

IUPUI had chances throughout the match, but never ultimately broke through. In the 12th minute, the Jaguars had a quality build negated by an offsides call. In the 35th minute, freshman Uriel Macias had a shot destined for the back of the net cleared off the line by an IPFW defender, keeping the Jaguars off the board. 

In the second half, Macias had a shot hit the crossbar in the 67th minute and missed just high on a header moments later. Fort Wayne capitalized on a rare second half scoring chance in the 71st minute when Jacob Murphy slid a pass to Maksimik, making his run right at the middle of the goal. Maksimik slipped a shot just inside the left post for the game's final score. 

IUPUI continued to knock on the door to break up the shutout, but never solved Fort Wayne goalie Raphael Kotzock. Junior Clint Hoffar had a shot denied by a Fort Wayne defender in the 76th minute and Kotzock stopped a Ryan Olans attempt in the 81st minute. Kotzock made two saves in the win while Lomeli made two saves in defeat. 

Macias attempted a game-high five shots, putting one on frame. 

IUPUI will return to action on Oct. 4 when the Jaguars head north for a non-conference match at Western Michigan. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 p.m..