Chicago, Ill. — Illinois Tech Men's Soccer had one final test before beginning NACC play next week. Grab a non-conference win against Beloit College Saturday night at Stuart Field. Mission accomplished, as the Hawks held off a late surge by the Buccaneers to win the match 2-1. The Scarlet Hawks outshot the Buccaneers 24-5 and held a 10-1 advantage in corner kicks.
The Scarlet Hawks are 3-2-0 overall. The Buccaneers are 0-4-0 overall.
How It Happened
The Scarlet Hawks generated the first attacking looks of the first half, as
Junior Pineda-Alcala and
Theo Balea recorded shots in the opening minutes around a Buccaneers corner, and
Tomas Rebelatto forced Ben Borger Germann into a save at 9:13 before the Scarlet Hawks earned corners at 9:18 and 9:53. The Scarlet Hawks continued to create chances through the middle of the half, adding a Pineda-Alcala shot at 11:06, an
Adrian Cogolludo attempt and another corner at 15:02, while a run of six fouls between 12:41 and 22:19 broke up the flow.
Cal Graham,
Carson Floyd,
Paul Balea,
Nick Skiba and
Dominik Kroupa all had attempts before Cogolludo scored at 39:18 to put the Scarlet Hawks ahead 1-0. The Scarlet Hawks added a late corner and a Floyd shot in the final minutes, and the half ended with the Scarlet Hawks leading 1-0.
Carrying a 1-0 lead into the early part of the second half, the Scarlet Hawks generated a run of chances, with Graham, Pineda-Alcala and
Paul Balea putting shots forward before Graham forced saves from Ben Borger Germann at 54:03 and 60:26.
David Rodriguez kept the Buccaneers off the board during the middle stretch, saving attempts from Matteo Jijon, Daniel Abreu, Giovannie Gutierrez and Tyner Amerine as the score stayed 1-0. The Scarlet Hawks continued to create set-piece pressure with corner kicks at 64:51, 73:49 and 84:44, and
Logan Olree put a shot on frame at 75:05 that Borger Germann saved. At 81:21,
Paul Balea scored off an assist from
Theo Balea to make it 2-0, and after Ervin Rosas answered for the Buccaneers at the same timestamp, the Scarlet Hawks saw out the final minutes for a 2-1 win.
Scarlet Hawk Standouts
Paul Balea
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- one goal
- game-winning goal
- three shots, one on goal
Adrian Cogolludo
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- one goal
- two shots, one on goal
David Rodriguez
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- four saves
- 90 minutes in goal
Cal Graham
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- five shots, two on goal
Theo Balea
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- one assist
- two shots
Buccaneers Top Performers
Ben Borger Germann
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- 5 saves
- 90 minutes in goal
Ervin Rosas
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- 1 unassisted goal
- 2 points
Game Notes:
- Scarlet Hawks men's soccer improved to 5-1 lifetime against the Buccaneers, winning the last five consecutive matches.
- Cogolludo - Scored his first goal of the season.
-
Paul Balea - Reached 10 total points this season.
- Team - Totaled 24 shots in the match, marking a season high for 2026-27.
Up Next
The Scarlet Hawks host Aurora University on Wednesday, Sept. 16, at 7 p.m. at Stuart Field for the start of NACC play.
