After three consecutive, hard fought losses, the Blackburn men’s soccer team faced off against Iowa Wesleyan University on Thursday Oct 12. It was clear to all from the start that the contest would be physical as penalties and yellow cards were handed out left and right — by the time the final whistle would blow, ten yellow cards were issued and 17 fouls committed.
From the opening kick, the Beavers and the Tigers battled for possession as scoring opportunities seemed few and far between. The back and forth fight continued as the game remained scoreless in the first 13 minutes until a defensive breakdown led to a goal by Iowa Wesleyan’s Elicer Urena. The Beavers found themselves in a familiar position, on the wrong end of a close contest, and began the hunt for an equalizer.
It would come from senior Harry Arter in the 27th minute, but it didn’t hold for long as Fabian Arvizu put the Tigers back on top less than two minutes later. Iowa Wesleyan’s lead grew as two second half goals helped to seal the deal in a 4-1 loss for the Beavers who dropped to 3-10-1 on the season.
After watching the men battle hard from start to finish, the Blackburn women’s soccer team hoped to flip the script and walk away with their third win of the season. Throughout the match, the Beavers were on the attack, finishing with 16 shots on goal compared to the Tigers three. While the shots poured in, Blackburn was unable to find the back of the net until junior Jasmine Tillman came up big for her team on a penalty kick, sending it passed the goalkeeper and putting her team up in the first half. While the Beavers could not add to their lead, their defense held strong to give Blackburn the 1-0 shutout win, improving to 3-11 on the season.