BETHANY, Okla. -- Senior keeper Britt Wisener collected a career-high 10 saves and senior Ryan Williams launched a go-ahead strike in the 74th minute as the John Brown University men's soccer team upset No. 18 Southwestern Christian (Okla.) on Tuesday afternoon at Cagle Family Field.
Marred by six yellow cards and 30 fouls, the Golden Eagles (6-6-1, 3-3-0 Sooner Athletic) overcame the chippy play and handed Southwestern Christian (12-2-1, 4-1-1) its first regulation SAC loss of the season and ended the hosts' eight-match unbeaten streak in the process.
Wisener made four saves in the first half and added another six in the second stanza, earning his career-best by limiting a team that averaged 3.3 goals per game to just one.
Freshman Goncalo Verissimo tallied his first collegiate goal in surprising fashion, launching a 30-yard blast in the 11th minute that beat SCU keeper Dev Bhamra, hit the underside of the crossbar and in, handing John Brown its first lead at Cage Family Field in 179 minutes of play.
The visitors made the most of its three shot attempts in the first half, and took a 1-0 lead into the intermission.
Igor Stojanovic recorded his 13th goal of the season in the 53rd minute, knotting the score at one apiece.
After that point, the Golden Eagles outshot SCU 9-6 over the final 37 minutes.
Williams tacked on his sixth of the season with 16:39 left to play when his shot glanced off an Eagle defender and past Bhamra for a 2-1 advantage.
Wisener made four saves in the final 11 minutes of play, including a trio of blocks over a three-minute span.
The win propels the Golden Eagles into an opportunity to earn home field advantage in the SAC tournament quarterfinals -- just one game behind Mid-America Christian (Okla.) for fourth place in the conference standings, and just 1.5 games out of first place outright.
The Golden Eagles ended their regular season road slate on Saturday with a matinee matchup at Central Christian (Kan.) in McPherson, Kan. Results were not available at presstime.
JBU is scheduled to return to action at 7 p.m. Thursday against Texas Wesleyan.
Sports on 10/21/2018