KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Western Michigan men's soccer team piled on five goals within the game's first 45 minutes en route to their 5-4 win over the Dayton Flyers Sunday afternoon. Charlie Sharp added three goals and Carson Hodgson tacked on two assists to lead the Broncos in Sunday afternoon's victory. 

The Broncos struck first within 10 minutes of action Sunday, after Will Perkins netted his first career goal for the Brown and Gold. Five minutes later, the offensive barrage continued as Sharp scored his first goal of the game to propel Western Michigan into a commanding 2-0 lead. The Broncos continued to attack: Less than five minutes after Sharp's goal, the senior would conclude his attack by adding on another goal from an assisting Hodgson to improve Western's lead to three with a little over 20 minutes played in the half.  

"We had a great start to the game, scoring 5 goals in the first half is phenomenal. Chuck getting a hat-trick in 25 minutes is very impressive", praised head coach Chad Wiseman.

After Sharp's hat trick the Brown and Gold continued to keep their foot on the gas: During the 28th minute of play, the Broncos saw their fifth and final goal from Dylan Sing after his teammate Hodgson recorded his second assist of the game, to give Western the 5-0 lead. Sing's goal would mark his first of the season and his 18th in his career.  

The Flyers would counter with two goals of their own in the first half after scoring in the 36th and 39th minutes. "I disrupted the game by making so many subs in the first half, we completely lost our focus and rhythm of the game when the changes were made, that starts and ends with me", explained Wiseman.  

Later in the second half, Dayton would score in the 57th, and 62nd, minutes to close in on a one-goal deficit. "I give Dayton a lot of credit, they fought hard to the end and had opportunities to grab a result on the road after being down 5 goals. They had some nice individual moments from some of their players", noted coach Wiseman.  

Despite the momentum shifting in Dayton's favor after WMU saw a red card with a third of the game still in the balance, the Broncos locked down on the defensive end of the field during the game's final frames. Western's back line saw multiple shots from Dayton's attack down the stretch but did not waver. "The toughness and leadership we showed in the final 20 minutes, down a man, was outstanding and I believe that is going to help us later in the season. It was a gutsy ending to a game that had a lot in it. I am certainly happy to get the win and move on and learn from the match", concluded Wiseman.
 

Historical Notes 

The Broncos have now won four consecutive games against the Flyers for the first time in series history. With the victory today, the Brown and Gold improved their series lead against  the Flyers to five wins and two ties. Additionally, Sharp tied Anthony Bowie (2016-19) for the third most games played in program history with 74.  He would also jump to third in the program scoring record book with his hat-trick. Sharp, now with 25 career goals, sits five goals away from claiming the second most goals in program history. Randy Wojtala (1976-79) currently holds the second place position with 29 goals scored. Additionally, the Broncos' five goals in the first half was the most the Brown and Gold would score in the first frame since their 7-1 win over Chicago State on Sunday, October 2, 2022, where they piled on seven first half goals.

Up Next

WMU will continue its homestand against Detroit Mercy on Wednesday, September 13, at 5:00 PM. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.