The Peacock men's soccer team got 2017 off on the right foot on Friday afternoon at Pattison Field with a 4-1 victory over the Rangers of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. With 18 minutes left in the match, Upper Iowa was in a deadlock at 1-1 with the visitors. However, the offense took over in the final minutes, scoring three times in that span to break the game open. With the victory, UIU starts their season 1-0 for the second time in the last three seasons. Wisconsin-Parkside drops to 0-1 on the year with the loss.

"I am delighted for the boys to earn this result to kick off the season," said first-year Head Coach Willie McGowan, who earned his first win at Upper Iowa. "We've come a long way in just 18 days and to play like this was a job well done by everyone involved."

The scoring got started in the 26th minute in the opening half when junior transfer Emilio Meraz-Rodriguez was given a free kick after a Ranger foul. From just outside the box, the midfielder used a terrific angle to put the ball in the back of the net and give Upper Iowa a 1-0 advantage. The Peacocks held a slight 7-6 lead in shot attempts in the first half, but solid defense kept it a one-goal game at halftime.

In the second stanza, the visitors would find a way to get on the board to tie the game. After a shot by UWP's Stevi Krecak hit the crossbar, he handled the ricochet right back at him and put the ball in from five yards out to tie the match in the 61st minute. The Peacocks took five consecutive shots to open the second half, but were unable to convert, and Wisconsin-Parkside took advantage on their first real scoring opportunity. Defenses would take over after that, and the game stayed tied for the next 11 minutes.

Upper Iowa saved their best performance for the final 18 minutes. In the 72nd minute, freshman Tate Lofdahl took teh ball down the sideline, and sent a perfect pass to teammate Manny Aparicio, who laced it through the back of the next from 14 yards away to give Upper Iowa a 2-1 lead. After a few shots from the visitors, UIU got another chance. With three minutes remaining in the game, Italo Martins Soares passed the ball to Ruairidh Crawford, who then gave it off to Seth Russell. Russell then got the ball back to Martins Soares, who sent a header through the net for the goal to give UIU an insurmountable 3-1 advantage. It looked like the game was over at that point, but the home team had one more trick up their sleeve.

In the final 30 seconds of the match, UIU's Efrain Gonzalez Jr. sent a deep ball down the middle of the pitch, and Crawford was standing alone and took a shot and scored. After a meeting by the officials, the ruling stood and the Peacocks held a 4-1 lead as time ran out.

The Peacocks outshot their guest by an ever-so-slight margin, 17-15, and held a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal. Senior goalkeeper Connor Rortvedt tallied three saves in goal, and picked up his first win of the season. The Rangers led 3-1 in corner kicks, but neither side was able to take advantage of a corner in the game.

Four different Peacocks scored in the match, and UIU has now scored nine goals in each of their last two regular season games played, dating back to Nov. 6 of last season, when UIU picked up a 5-1 home win over the University of Mary to close out the 2016 campaign.

"We had three new players all get on the scoresheet, and we were very happy to see that," added McGowan. "It has been great to see the impact those guys are having on our team."

Upper Iowa will return to Pattison Field on Sunday, Sept. 3, when they host the Flyers of Lewis University (1-0). Kickoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. on Sunday, and the game will available online on UIU TV, and will be broadcast in eastern Iowa on KCRG TV 9.3. The game will can also be seen on Roku TV, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and Android TV.

"We still have a few things to tweak as we move forward and Lewis will be another tough test," said McGowan. "The team earned this win today by playing for each other and showing a lot of character after they equalized. Overall, it was a good day for our team."