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Flowers

Previewing the Weekend Slate

| By: WIU Athletic Communications

Leathernecks host SIUE before hitting the road and facing Milwaukee.

Who | Western Illinois (0-2-1) vs SIUE (2-1-1) / @ Milwaukee (1-3)
When | Friday, Sept. 9 – 4:30 p.m. / Tuesday, Sept. 13 - 5 p.m.
Where | John MacKenzie Alumni Field – Macomb, Ill. / Engelmann Stadium – Milwaukee, Wis.
Social media | Instagram + Twitter + Facebook 

Matchup History: Western Illinois men's soccer has faced SIUE 22 times in program history, last matching up on Feb. 28, 2021, in a game that finished as a 1-0 loss in Edwardsville, Ill. Alex Flowers, Kyle Owen, Caleb Ragland and Ryan DeBois started in the game while Arian Mehrang and Muazu Sagir appeared off the bench. Against the Panthers, Western holds a 4-13-1 record all-time dating back to the first ever matchup on Oct. 29, 1993; WIU fell 3-1 in last season's matchup. After taking a one-goal advantage in the 19th minute, Milwaukee scored three unanswered to complete the victory.

So far this season: The Leathernecks are 0-2-1 this season and coming off a promising game against IUPUI, scoring three goals in a 3-3 draw on the road. After struggling to score goals last season, WIU is currently averaging 1.3 per game and, including the Aug. 29 no-contest against Drake, has scored in three of its first four games. Three of this season's four official goals have been assisted on while the team has drawn as many fouls as it has committed (44). Eight players have started every game this season, a list that includes freshmen Abdul Hypolite and Marco Presta.

Scouting the opponents: SIUE is currently 2-1-1 and coming off back-to-back home victories against two Summit League teams in Lindenwood and Southern Indiana. The Cougars did pitch a shutout against the Lions, and are led by sophomore Pau Palacin who has scored a team-high three goals. Milwaukee is 1-3, most recently falling 2-3 to Northern Illinois on Monday (Sept. 5). The Panthers did win, 2-1, against Wisconsin four days prior to the NIU game; Logan Farrington has scored in back-to-back games, earning the top mark on his team. Milwaukee faces Drake on Thursday before the Tuesday matchup.
 
Players to watch: Muazu Sagir is coming off one of his best weekends of play since joining the program, scoring one goal and adding three assists in two appearances (two starts). A forward from Alpharetta, Ga., Sagir started his weekend with a goal against Fort Wayne on Friday (Sept. 2), finishing a loose ball to give Western a one-goal advantage in the 12th minute. Against IUPUI on Sunday (Sept. 4), Sagir assisted on each of Western's three goals, something that has only been accomplished four times in program history while tying for second-most in a single game in program history. Sagir now leads the team in points with five.
 
Against IUPUI Xavier Brown scored his first goal of the season, opening his 2022 account while also notching his first since 2018. Currently tied for second on the roster in points scored (two), shots (three) and shots on goal (two), Brown has played 218 minutes this season for an average of 72.7 per contest, which is the fourth-highest mark on the roster. Originally from Belleville, Ill., Brown joins Kyle Owen, Arian Mehrang and Ryan DeBois as the only players on the current roster with 40+ appearances as a Leatherneck.

What's next: After the conclusion of this weekend's games, Western Illinois men's soccer comes back to Macomb for a long stretch at home, with seven of the next eight games being played at John MacKenzie Alumni Field. The action starts next Saturday (Sept. 17) with a matchup against Northern Illinois; kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
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