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Western Illinois Takes on St. Ambrose & Northern Kentucky in Weekend Matches

| By: WIU ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

LOCATION CHANGE: Thursday's match against St. Ambrose will be played at Peacock Memorial Athletic Park on the campus of Monmouth College. The Leathernecks also travel to Northern Kentucky for a Sunday match.

Where | Peacock Memorial Athletic Park - Monmouth, IL | Scudamore Stadium - Highland Heights, Ky. 
When | 
Thursday, September 5, 5 PM vs. St. Ambrose @ Monmouth           Live Stats
Sunday, September 8, 12 PM @ Northern Kentucky     Live Stats
(All times central)

About the Fighting Bees:
Western Illinois and St. Ambrose square off for just the second time in regular season history on Thursday, the last match being a Leatherneck win in 1995. An NAIA outfit, Saint Ambrose went 4-9-2 in 2023 and started off the 2024 season with a nil-nil draw against Knox College. 

Heading to Highland Heights:
Last season, NKU finished 4-10-3 with a 3-6 record in Horizon League play, good for ninth in the conference. The Northern Kentucky Norse are 0-2-2 in 2024, earning road draws against Xavier and UAB. The Leathernecks have a 1-2-1 record all-time against NKU and lost two to one in a 2023 matchup in Highland Heights. The Norse have scored three goals in 2024, all scored on and assisted by different players. 

This Past Weekend:
The Leathernecks took on Bradley and Quincy last week, losing four-nil to Bradley in Peoria, and defeating Quincy two-nil in Macomb. Joel McIntyre and Xavier Gagnon scored their first goals of the 2024 season against the Hawks, as both players joined keeper Micah Ramirez on the OVC's notable performers list last week. The Leathernecks look to build on Sunday's victory this week. 

Opening Weekend:
Grand Canyon played host to the Leathernecks to open the season, and defeated WIU three-nil, using pressing and their speed to capitalize on defensive mistakes. The Leathernecks looked like a team in their first game of the year, still trying to find a rhythm, and trying to find ways to create chances was difficult. Sunday's match at Butler looked like a whole new squad, as Leathernecks shifted formation to play three center backs, which allowed Western's outside backs and wingers to find space. Freshman winger Tyler Philpott was particularly great, providing good defensive effort, and beating defenders with speed and skill. He provided an assist to the clinical Liam Gainey in the Leathernecks' one-all draw with the Bulldogs, as the Leathernecks showed a lot of fight playing with ten men down the stretch. 

Key Returners:
Western Illinois brings back 14 players from its 2023 squad. In his third year with the Leathernecks, midfielder Oscar Olingdahl looks to have a big season, as he's started 25 games in his Leatherneck career. After a stellar freshman season where he started all 17 matches, Joel McIntyre will be a key factor for the 2024 side. Another defender, Gabe Chapa, also started in all matches last season and ranked second on the team in minutes played in 2023. An attacker, Xavier Gagnon, also started all matches last season and scored on two occasions while leading all freshmen in minutes. 

Player to Watch:
In the Ohio Valley Conference's preseason poll, Jimmy Baars was named an OVC Player to Watch. A senior midfielder, Baars is in his second year with the Leathernecks. A native of Kudelstaart, Netherlands, Baars started in seven of his 14 appearances, totaling 590 minutes on the year. He finished his 2023 campaign with nine shot attempts and four on goal. 

Fresh Faces:
Dr. Eric Johnson and company refreshes the 2024 squad with new, exciting talent, as he brings in 15 newcomers to this team. Goalkeeper Micah Ramirez transfers in from Temple, where he made 22 saves in five appearances. Joining him as junior transfers are midfielder Dayton Strattman from St. Charles Community College, defender Gabriel Velasco from Irvine Valley College, and midfielder Shu Kato from Southern Nazarene. Highlighting the newcomers are 11 freshmen. Of the freshmen, five are defenders, those being Ryan Wrobleski, Benjamin Graham, Leevi Swearengen, August Jacus, and Fernando Adrados Castro. Five more freshmen are attacking players, as Henrry Abarca-Gonzalez, Bruce Harris, Will Knight, Tyler Philpott, and Ty Duax join the squad. Another newcomer, Alexis Michaud, is the only freshman keeper on the squad. 

FOLLOW THE LEATHERNECKS
For all the latest information on Leatherneck Men's Soccer, please visit GoLeathernecks.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Leathernecks on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
 
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