KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Western Michigan University men's soccer team plays its last home non-conference match on Tuesday night against Holy Cross College (Ind.) for the first meeting between the two programs.

LAST TIME OUT
Western Michigan had more shots on goal but didn't find the back of the net in a 1-0 loss to the Evansville Purple Aces. Junior midfielder Gabe Villagomez had a career night on the pitch with four shots, leading the Broncos in a tight match against Evansville. 

WMU had more opportunities at the net with nine shots on goal compared to the Purple Aces eight. But a penalty kick in the 71st minute for UE was the only goal scored through 90 minutes of play for the Brown and Gold's first Missouri Valley Conference loss of the year.

STAYING DISCIPLINED
Western Michigan set a season-low for foul's committed in its close match with the Purple Aces. While the Broncos usually average 11.8 whistles a game, WMU was called for only 6 infractions on Sunday night. It was the first time the Brown and Gold has had six fouls or less this season. The last time Western Michigan only hit six fouls was last season, when the Broncos hosted Bowling Green on October 25, 2025.

WMU was able to frustrate Evansville in the team's meeting over the weekend as the Aces committed 10 fouls to the Brown and Gold's six. Western Michigan has been called for less whistles than its opponents for more than half their matches in 2026 as Sunday was the eighth such match. 

HEADING TO THE CORNERS
Since beginning conference play last month, the Broncos have increased the number of corner kick attempts they have through 90 minutes. In 10 games of non-conference play WMU has been averaging 5.2 corners a match. But in MVC action, the Brown and Gold have been able to get over two additional opportunities at 7.6 corner kicks a game. 

With the increase in corner production, Western Michigan now ranks second among Valley teams for corner kicks this season. The Broncos have 75 corners heading into Tuesday night's match against Holy Cross at a clip of 5.77 a game. That average has the Broncos tied for 48th overall in the country while only being 2.48 corners a match behind the national leader Washington. 

IN RARE COMPANY
On Tuesday night junior forward Sahel Yessen accomplished something very few players have done in WMU history this millennium. Yessen became only the eighth member of the Brown and Gold to record a hat trick dating back to the 2001 season. He also became just the third player to score a hat trick in the 2020's after Western Michigan didn't have a single one the decade prior.

Prior to Yessen's three goals on Tuesday night, the Broncos last hat trick came during the 2024 season. At Detroit Mercy junior midfielder Carson Hodgson recorded his first career hat trick on October 22nd. Hodgson's triple scoring performance against the Titans marked the third straight season with a hat trick for WMU.

SCOUTING THE SAINTS
Holy Cross has had a strong start to its season at an over .700 win percentage. The Saints currently hold a 6-1-5 overall record through 12 matches but has not been able to earn more than one point against conference opponents. HCC has not earned a win over a Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) team in three tries so far as all the games have ended in ties. Western Michigan will be the only NCAA team that Holy Cross will face this year.

The Saints are led on the field by sophomore forward Xavier Fox with five goals in nine matches played. Fox missed the first three matches of the season but has made up for it at a 0.5 goal a match clip. Closely behind Fox is junior midfielder Victor Sanz Paz with eight points in 12 matches from three goals and two assists. In goal, HCC has used three goalkeepers so far but have mostly relied on senior goalie Sam Negus. In his first year with the Saints after his previous school closed, Negus has started in nine matches with a 0.84 GAA while making 21 saves for a 0.750 save percentage.