The UIS men's soccer team put together an explosive offensive performance Saturday, earning a 5-3 victory over Truman State in Great Lakes Valley Conference play. The Prairie Stars improve to 2-3-1 overall, 1-2 in the GLVC. 

Game Recap
An adjusted Prairie Stars lineup included goalkeeper Edoardo Pinna in his season debut and Edon Saipi in his first start, along with several others making just their second starts of the year.

Truman State struck first when Jacob Papago pushed one into an unguarded net to stun UIS inside the first 15 minutes. The Stars leveled quickly, however, as Jero Bencomo scored his first goal in a UIS uniform.

Papago nearly struck again, but Pinna came up with the save to keep it tied. Both sides pushed forward with urgency as the first half unfolded.

UIS earned a penalty midway through the half, with Robin Lemke Bergseth stepping up to take it. His attempt was deflected by the Bulldogs' keeper, but Bergseth calmly buried the rebound for a 2-1 advantage, which UIS carried into halftime.

Seven minutes after the restart, Mahomet Doucoure played a ball upfield into the far corner for Carter Downen, who crossed it in front of the net. With the goalkeeper and defenders out of position, Spencer Martin shot it into the right corner for a 3-1 lead.

Downen nearly added one of his own moments later, missing to the left, before Truman answered on the other end to cut the margin back to one.

UIS kept creating, and Jack Hudson extended the lead to 4-2 with his third header goal of the season, assisted by Mitch Olenick's corner.

The Stars struck again in the 74th minute when Josh Conrad pressured a Truman defender in possession. As the defender tried to play the ball back up field, Conrad swooped in from his left side and slotted the ball home for a 5-2 advantage.

Truman converted a penalty kick in the 78th minute to make it 5-3, but UIS held strong to secure the win.

The Bulldogs outshot the Stars 16-11 (6–5 on goal), but UIS capitalized on key moments, with Bencomo and Bergseth both stepping up with timely finishes. Pinna recorded two saves while showing strong awareness outside the box.

"After going behind so early, to turn that around in the first half was pleasing," said head coach Graham Shaw. "I thought we controlled the first half, and in the second half we dominated for large parts, with the goals reflecting that. As the half went on, we did get a little fatigued, but overall it was a very positive day. Now we prepare for next weekend's long away trip to Rockhurst and Southwest Baptist."

Up Next
UIS heads west for a full GLVC road weekend, facing Rockhurst on Friday night before taking on Southwest Baptist on Sunday afternoon.