PLYMOUTH, Wis. –
Dunia Wangu (
Jr.-Milwaukee, Wis.) continued his early-season scoring binge with a hat trick and the Lakeland University men's soccer team won again with a 4-0 shutout of Grace Christian (Mich.) University Friday afternoon at John Taylor Memorial Field.
The Muskies continued their longest winning streak in 18 years, winning their fifth straight game and fifth game in nine days. Lakeland improved to 5-1 overall by winning the first-ever meeting with the Tigers, who dropped to 3-2 overall.
The Muskies broke free from a stalemate for much of the game's first half to control the final 55 minutes. Lakeland scored the match's first goal with just under six minutes remaining in the first half and then largely dominated the second half, outshooting Grace Christian 13-0 over the final 45 minutes and getting two goals late to put the game away.
Wangu has been on a goal-scoring tear to open the season, tallying a goal in four of the Muskies' first five games coming in and at least one point in all five games. He scored two goals twice already earlier in the season, and on Friday notched his first career hat trick and added an assist on Lakeland's other goal.
Wangu scored the first goal of the match late in the first half, when
Woodlens Frederic (
Fr.-Green Bay, Wis.) took the ball away from a Grace defender and it went right to Wangu, who ran on and fired a shot behind Tigers goalkeeper Logan Werschem and inside the left post to make it 1-0.
The contest stayed a one-goal game well into the second half, a score indicative of the hard-fought game it was much of the way. The Muskies capitalized with their second goal in the 69th minute, though, with a quick transition as Wangu stepped in to steal a pass near midfield, then turned and lofted a pass behind the defense. Frederic ran it down and got to it just before Werschem, popping the ball up just before running into the goalkeeper and the ball bounced once and then bounced over the goal line for the freshman's second goal of the season and a 2-0 lead.
Lakeland continued to carry play and then tacked on two goals in the match's final four minutes. The first came in the 87th minute when
Luca Stevens (
So.-New Lenox, Ill.) made a run from a defender spot down the right side, received a pass from
Austin Eigenberger-Vahsholtz (
Jr.-Grafton, Wis.) and then crossed a long pass over Werschem to Wangu on the left post. The Muskies forward poked at the ball while falling down and knocked it off Werschem, with the defelection going into the net for a three-goal lead.
Lakeland added a final goal with less than a minute left. Stevens sent a long pass ahead from the back line and Wangu again beat the defense to the ball, leading to a one-on-one with the goalkeeper that he won with a goal inside the right post for the game's final margin.
Wangu's nine goals lead NCAA Division III early in the season, and his 20 total points also are most in Division III early on. He is one goal away from giving the Muskies a 10-goal scorer for the second straight season, after
Jordan Davis-Troller (
Sr.-Cottage Grove, Wis.) scored 10 goals last year.
The Muskies finished outshooting Grace Christian 21-7 for the match, with a 12-3 advantage in shots on goal including 8-0 in the second half. Werschem made eight saves, while
Ali Faiad (
Fr.-Tampa, Fla.) stopped three shots for his first complete game shutout.
Lakeland goes on the road for its next match Sunday when it faces Beloit College at 11 a.m. in Beloit, Wis.
