MACOMB, Ill. - The IU Indianapolis men's soccer team won for the fourth time in its past five games as the Jaguars went on the road and defeated Western Illinois 3-1 on Tuesday night (Sept. 16). Sophomore Tyson Aschliman led the attack with a goal and an assist and classmate Christian Nielsen tallied the eventual game-winner just ahead of halftime. Redshirt sophomore Nathaniel Isom registered the game's first goal off a Youri Keijser assist in the opening minutes. 

Declan Finnegan earned the win in goal, recording five saves.

"It was huge for us to get this win going into Saturday," Nielsen said. "The conditions weren't the easiest to play in. It really took the whole team to get the win and really helps to go into another conference game with confidence." 

The IU Indy (4-2-2) attack was incredibly efficient in the opening 45 minutes as both shot attempts resulted in scores. Isom opened the scoring less than six minutes into the contest when he took a Keijser pass and converted it into his second goal of the season, beating WIU (2-6) keeper Micah Ramirez on the play. 

WIU equalized in the 20th minute on a Liam Gainey score, but Nielsen had a spectacular finish in the 36th minute to regain the lead. Aschliman centered a pass to his fellow attacker, leading to a tough conversion in close. 

Aschliman added late insurance with a tally in the 79th minute as the Jaguars outshot the Leathernecks 8-5 after halftime. 

Head Coach Sid van Druenen went deeper into his bench than usual, trying to manage minutes ahead of a key Horizon League contest this weekend. Both Aschliman and Nielsen played 55 minutes apiece off the bench while many IU Indy regulars got much needed breaks. Junior defender Nikolai Zapolskikh was the lone field player to log all 90 minutes, lining up next to Jago Thompson-Roberts for the first half and Brady Horn for the second half. 

"The boys showed resilience today and that was great to see. I thought we wanted it more and were willing to do what it takes and that was what got us the win," van Druenen said. "The group is continuing to grow and I feel like we are playing with a good level of confidence and maturity and that is leading us to wins. 

"It's absolutely vital that we keep that up as conference will start to heat up now in the next few weeks."

The Jaguars will return home to host Milwaukee on Saturday (Sept. 20) at 5:00 p.m. on ESPN+. Fans who bring a new or gently used book will get free admission as part of IU Indy's partnership with Champions for Literacy.