(MARQUETTE COMMUNICATIONS) MILWAUKEE – Belief. The Marquette University men’s soccer team had to believe it could find a way on Saturday afternoon, twice overcoming a one-goal deficit and playing the final 17 minutes down a man, in a 3-2 comeback against Southern Indiana at Valley Fields. Freshman Tomiwa Adewumi turned in the first hat trick of his career, scoring three times in the final 22 minutes.
USI jumped on the Golden Eagles, finding a free header off a corner in the eighth minute. Things took another turn in the the 17th minute as Adewumi, MU’s top scorer, left the game in the first half due to an illness he was playing through. The Golden Eagles struggled to find the back of net in his absence.
Drew Mullins nearly leveled the match late in the half but his long-range effort was tipped over the crossbar. Despite controlling possession and generating five first-half corner kicks, and holding a 5-2 shot advantage Marquette went into the break trailing by a goal.
With just over 30 minutes remaining in the game and MU still trailing 1-0, Adewumi re-entered. Momentum began to shift as Marquette began to increase its tempo and work rate, keeping much of the possession in the Screaming Eagles’ half.
In the 69th minute, the freshman leveled the match. Beating USI’s keeper to a 50-50 ball on the left side of the box on a long ball from Aiden Goldberg, Adewumi got past the keeper, cut back on the end line and ripped shot past defender on the goal line.
The Golden Eagles faced another setback when Gabe Watkins was issued a red card in the 73rd minute, forcing Marquette to play the remainder of the match down a man. Southern Indiana capitalized seven minutes later as the visitors took a 2-1 lead in the 80th minute.
Undeterred, Marquette responded almost immediately. Adewumi pulled the Golden Eagles level again in the 85th minute, pouncing on a loose ball at the edge of the 18 that came off an Antonio Costabile shot that was blocked. The freshman slipped through two defenders and slotted a left-footed shot inside the left post.
Just under two minutes later, Joey Buchanan was taken down in the box as Mateo Stoka looked to find him on a late free kick from 25 yards out. The fifth-year leader handed the ball off to his freshman striker to complete the comeback. Adewumi converted the penalty to his left, giving Marquette its first lead of the afternoon at 3-2 with less than four minutes to play.
Marquette outshot Southern Indiana 17-7 and held advantages in shots on goal (9-2) and corner kicks (10-5). The Golden Eagles generated 12 of their 17 shot attempts after halftime while continually pressuring the Southern Indiana back line.
NOTABLES
- Adewumi recorded the first hat trick of his Marquette career.
- It was the first Marquette hat trick since Alex Mirsberger against Western Michigan on Sept. 20, 2022.
- Adewumi’s three goals increased his season total to eight through seven matches and maintains his lead as the nation’s top scoring freshman.
- Goldberg earned his first assist of the season on the game-tying goal.
- Marquette overcame a deficit twice and won despite playing the final 17 minutes with 10 men.
- The Golden Eagles finished with season highs in shots (17) and corner kicks (10).
UP NEXT
Marquette opens BIG EAST play on Sept. 18 at No. 4 Georgetown.
