WEST LIBERTY, W.Va. – The West Liberty University men's soccer team scored on a penalty kick in the first half and the WLU defense made that stand up in a 1-0 shutout of West Virginia Wesleyan at the West Family Athletic Complex.
    After surviving an early flurry by the Bobcats (4-2-0, 3-2-0) that saw goalkeeper Noah Underwood come up big with three clutch saves in a 90-second span, it was Coach Sean Regan's Hilltoppers (3-4-0, 2-4-0) that broke the scoring ice.
    Wesleyan committed a foul in the box in the battle for the rebound after a shot by Liam Toman was blocked and senior captain Bernardo Vilchis ripped home the penalty kick for a 1-0 lead in the 33rd minute.
    The Bobcats had a chance to equalize in the 35th minute when WLU returned the favor with a foul inside the box but Underwood came through once more with a huge save on the PK by Wesleyan's Connor Hartwell.
    There was no scoring in the second half but there was plenty of action. West Liberty nearly doubled its advantage in the 60th minute when Bobcat keeper Logan Nelson turned aside a shot by Vitor Otsuka and then stoned Mark Donnelly on the rebound attempt.
    Underwood delivered one more save, stopping Javie De Ona Garcia in the 58th minute, and the WLU defense frustrated the visitors the rest of the way.
    Despite repeated forays into the Hilltopper end, Wesleyan was held without a a shot for the final 30 minutes of the match. Toman nearly scored again on a counter-attack in the 87th minute only to see Nelson make a diving stop to keep his team's fading hopes alive.
    West Liberty outshot the Bobcats, 9-7, on the afternoon with each team recording 5 shots on goal. Underwood finished with 5 saves to earn his second clean sheet of the season. Nelson had 4 saves in a losing cause.
    The Hilltoppers return to the West Family Athletic Complex pitch on Wednesday for a 7:30 p.m. match against Wheeling.
  W.Va. Wesleyan                                 0  0 – 0
West Liberty                                       1  0 – 1      WLU: Bernardo Vilchis (penalty kick), 32:18      Shots: W.Va. Wesleyan 7, West Liberty 9
     Shots on Goal: W.Va. Wesleyan 5, West Liberty 5
     Saves: W.Va. Wesleyan 4 (Logan Nelson 4), West Liberty 5 (Noah Underwood 5)
     Corners: W.Va. Wesleyan 3, West Liberty 2
A: 126