Marceli Okonski and
Andrew Swacha combined for eight saves as Lake Forest fell 2-1 to Wisconsin-Whitewater.
The Foresters had an early look at goal, as a ball played across the box landed just out of the reach of
Jimmy Cirbo. Senior
Gustavo Machado followed up with a shot that missed to the right before
Ollie Francis and
Vico Pozuelos both had shots blocked in the 8th minute.
The blocks continued for both sides, as
Noah Jesus Rosborough denied a Whitewater chance in the box with a sliding effort. In the 17th minute, the Warhawks latched on to the end of a long throw and nodded home the ball to take a 1-0 lead. UWW continued to dominate possession at the midway point of the first half, forcing
Marceli Okonski into a close-range save down the middle of the goal.
Five minutes later, Okonski made another save, keeping the Foresters within one. The sophomore was called into action again in the 36th minute as Lake Forest remained in the defensive half. Two more saves for Okonski before the half meant he finished with five saves in the half, the most in a single game in his two years as a Forester.
Down by one at the break, Lake Forest created another early chance in the second half.
Rocky Rabago played a ball across the face of the goal, but again the Foresters were a step behind the ball. As the Warhawks grew into the second half,
Andrew Swacha made a stellar save from point-blank range as he moved across the face of his goal and sprawled out to deny a shot with his legs. On the follow-up,
Taelin Stanfield cleared the ball off the goal line to make sure the deficit remained at one.
After a turnover on defense, the Foresters fouled a Whitewater player in the box, and the visitors capitalized from the penalty spot to extend their lead to 2-0 in the 65th minute. Swacha came up big in the 70th minute, denying two consecutive Warhawk chances by chasing down the ball as it bounced around the box.
In the 78th minute, Lake Forest had a flurry of chances on offense.
Nathan Kostovetsky hit the left post before the Warhawks' goalkeeper denied
Elijah Khaldun and
Vico Pozuelos from close range with back-to-back saves.
The Foresters scored in the 85th minute, as
Kristian Kopacz launched a volley with his right foot from the edge of the box that left the Warhawk defense flat-footed and nestled into the bottom right of the goal. Lake Forest continued to push in the final five minutes, but the Foresters could not find a late equalizer as the final score remained 2-1 to the visitors.
Lake Forest men's soccer continues the season with a home match on Saturday against Beloit. Kickoff at Mohr Field is set for 11 a.m.
