Upper Iowa went on the road Wednesday night to take on the William Jewell College Cardinals in a non-conference match in Liberty, Mo. After trailing at halftime, the Peacocks rallied with two second-half goals to overcome the deficit and pick up the victory. In a physical game that featured fouls and cards, UIU was able to overcome it with solid play in the second half to earn a crucial win. The win gets Upper Iowa back to .500 at 5-5 on the season, while William Jewell drops to 3-9 with the loss.

"We are really proud of the lads tonight," said Head Coach Willie McGowan. "They showed a great deal of character tonight to come from behind in a very competitive game which became quite physical at times. We did not back down from the challenge and are walking away from a tough opponent with a well-deserved win."

The Peacocks led the match in shot attempts, 16-11, but in the first half it was the hometown Cardinals who held the edge, 9-6. William Jewell got the scoring started in the 35th minute when Noah Espinosa scored his second goal of the season after he got a pass from teammate Chris Cotton. The Cardinals took the 1-0 lead into the locker room, as the Peacocks struggled to score in the opening 45 minutes. UIU held a 3-1 lead in the half in corner kicks, but could not capitalize for a goal. All that would change in the second half.

Six minutes into the second frame, the Peacocks found the equalizer. In the 51st minute, Italo Martins Soares scored with an assist from teammate Ruairidh Crawford to tie the match. The goal was his third of the season, tying Crawford for the team lead. Upper Iowa only took seven shots in the second half, but took advantage of those opportunities to not just tie the game, but eventually take the lead.

While the offense started to find themselves, the defense buckled down in the final 45 minutes. UIU's second-half shutout was highlighted by holding the Cardinals to just 5 shot attempts, and 3 on goal. Connor Rortvedt, who finished with six saves, tallied three key ones in the second half to go along with solid back line play. Upper Iowa faced four corner kicks in the half as well, but kept WJC to just the one goal for the game.

Physicality took over as well, as 26 fouls were handed out, including eight yellow cards and a red card. Throughout that, the Peacocks were able to buckle down late and find a way to grab a lead they would not relinquish. In the 77th minute, Seth Russell scored his first goal of the season to break the tie and give UIU its first lead. Russell has only taken six shots this season, but his first goal could not have come at a better time. UIU held on for the win, as they snapped their four-game losing streak.

"These past 10 days or so have been huge for us to evaluate a few things," added McGowan. "We are refocusing on the aspects of the game we had to the concentration on at the start of the season. The lads are working hard each day in practice and as a team we are moving forward. We are very excited to see where it goes from here."

UIU's next task will be the second half of the MIAA schedule. Upper Iowa returns to Pattison Field in Fayette on Sunday as they host the Lions of Lindenwood University at 11 a.m.

"Sunday's game will be tough as we look for that first MIAA win," McGowan said. "I'm confident if we see the same spirit and togetherness we showed tonight it'll be a very good game to be involved in."