Red Devils Strike First but Fall 2-1 at Ripon

RIPON, Wis. – Eureka men's soccer struck first but couldn't hold on, falling 2-1 to Ripon on Sunday afternoon.

The Red Devils opened the scoring in the 22nd minute when Joyce Kabesa (Bloomington, Ill./Bloomington) buried a penalty kick drawn by Aldo Mora-Lovera (Lisle, Ill./Lisle). It was Kabesa's 10th goal of the season, tying him for second in all of NCAA Division III in goals scored.

Ripon responded before halftime. In the 39th minute, Finley Manning leveled the match with a finish assisted by Isaiah Martinez. The hosts then took the lead in the 54th minute when Carmine Di Miele scored off a feed from Brodie Hoth, making it 2-1.

Eureka generated 12 shots, including five from Kabesa, but couldn't find an equalizer. Uli Castaneda (Bloomington, Ill./Normal West), Oscar Villagrana (Bakersfield, Calif./Ridgeview), and Gabriel Gonzalez (Oak Forest, Ill./Homeschooled) each recorded shots on goal but were all denied by the keeper.

Goalkeeper duties were split for Eureka. Charles Wyzukovicz (Elgin, Ill./Central) made two first half saves, and Sebastian Torres (Fort Worth, Texas/Castleberry) added four in the second half to keep the Red Devils within striking distance.

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Eureka will travel to Bloomington to face Illinois Wesleyan on Wednesday at 5 p.m. in a makeup of the Sept. 3 contest that was postponed due to severe weather.