DEKALB, IL. -- The #14 Western Michigan men's soccer team continued its unbeaten run with a 2-1 road victory at Northern Illinois University behind goals from sophomore defender Braxton Arpachinda and junior midfielder Ronan Wilcox. 

"Three points on the road, was exactly what the team was looking to accomplish. DeKalb is never an easy place to play at." said WMU men's soccer head coach Chad Wiseman on the Brown and Gold's victory.

The Brown and Gold raced off to a fast start Saturday after Arpachinda scored at the 13:05 mark to put WMU in front. With his score, the defender continued to improve his career year and netted his second goal of the season. 

After the halftime break, NIU responded in the 68th minute of the contest and tied the game up at 1-1. 

At the 81:15 mark, the junior midfielder Wilcox subbed on for the Brown and Gold. Less than three minutes later, at 83:56, Wilcox scored his first career collegiate goal (and first career game-winner) to put the Brown and Gold ahead with less than 20 minutes remaining in regulation. 

"Credit to Ronan for stepping up and making a play when we really needed one.  He has played a lot of matches on that field over the last few summers." 

Defensively, WMU put on another clinic and held NIU to a total of seven shots throughout the entire course of the contest on Saturday. Today marked the 24th consecutive game in which the Brown and Gold limited opponents to one goal or fewer. 

"We need to get hot as we start to come down the home stretch of the regular season.  We have learned some lessons through the season, both good and bad and now we need to put everything together.  The staff has a lot of confidence in this team." 

Historical Notes

Team captain Landon Fisher now owns the fourth most appearances with 76 and counting. Fisher needs four more appearances to become the third Bronco to play at least 80 games for the Brown and Gold. 

With Wilcox's goal, at least 12 Broncos have scored in a campaign for the first time since 2019. 

Up Next

The Brown and Gold will return to WMU Soccer Complex on Tuesday, October 15, and host Green Bay. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:00 PM.