KALAMAZOO, Mich.- With Mid-American Conference Tournament seeding on the line, the Western Michigan men's soccer team needed a victory this afternoon at the WMU Soccer Complex. For the first time in school history, the Broncos defeated the Mountaineers of West Virginia University, 2-1, on Senior Day.

The Broncos are undefeated in MAC play with a 1-0-3 record and are 9-4-4 overall on the season clinching one of the four spots in the conference tournament.

"What a great way to send our five seniors out at home," commented WMU head coach Chad Wiseman. "They are a great group of young men and I am so proud of them and what they have brought to our soccer program, athletic department and university."

How It Happened:
The Broncos developed the attack early as senior defender Hunter Vandenboom sent a cross into the eighteen. A West Virginia player was whistled for a hand ball inside the box, awarding Western Michigan a penalty kick in the eighth minute. Mountaineer goalie Jose Santos would deliver a diving save from a Zach Bock kick but was unable to hold onto the ball. Bock continued his run towards the goal, collected the rebound and the junior calmly placed the ball in the back of the net.

Western Michigan recorded the game-winning goal in the 15^th minute. Freshman Anthony Bowie and senior Diego Lopez developed a beautiful combination play inside the West Virginia final third. The veteran midfielder Lopez would place the ball to the far left corner past Santos, recording his fourth of the season as WMU pulled ahead, 2-1.

After the half, Lopez had a great look in the 62^nd minute as he ripped a shot following a beautiful pass from Bowie through the defense. Santos again came up with a great kick save.

Lopez would develop another goal-scoring opportunity in the 73^rd minute. The senior showed off his fancy footwork on the right side of the 18-yard box dribbling past a Mountaineer defender and sending a shot to the far post. This time the ball would fly past Santos but a WVU defender was there to clear the ball off the line.

In the 79^th minute, Bronco goalkeeper Drew Shepherd was issued a red card following a hard foul inside the box. The oncoming WMU goalie Kyle Taalman was called upon to defend the penalty shot. West Virginia's Jack Elliott would capitalize on the attempt as the Mountaineers pulled within one.

Taalman stepped up in goal for the Broncos making key saves in the 82^nd and 85^th minute to help WMU preserve the 2-1 victory and clinch a spot in the MAC Tournament.  

West Virginia's record moved to 8-6-1 and 1-3-0 in the MAC with the result.

Quoting Wiseman:
"We came out of the gates swinging and could not have asked for a better start" commented WMU head coach Chad Wiseman. "We created two good chances and made plays in both of those moments."

"In the second half we knew West Virginia would push numbers forward. We needed to defend for longer periods but we believed we could create some chances against the run of play. We had a number of clear cut chances to find the third goal but were unable to finish and put the game away."

"The final 10 minutes were filled with big game moments including the red card the shifted the momentum. The resolve we showed after having our all-conference goal keeper sent off was amazing."

"Diego Lopez was special this afternoon and WVU didn't have an answer for him. The leadership from Edu Jimenez, Zach Bock and Hunter Vandenboom was what we needed to get the win. I am just proud of my guys, we had our backs against the wall playing for a tournament spot and they found a way to get the result."

Next Up:
Western Michigan clinches one of the four seeds in the MAC Tournament after this afternoon's victory and will conclude the regular season Saturday, Nov. 5, traveling to Akron, Ohio. The game against the Zips is slated to begin at 7:30 p.m. The 2016 MAC Tournament is scheduled for Nov. 11 & 13.