Senior Felix Boe-Tangen picked up his first assist and first goal of the season

By Jake Geiger

Xavier men’s soccer continued their early season success with two wins last weekend against Chicago State and Northwestern. Both games were nail-biters, as the Musketeers were able to score late goals in the contests and move to 5-1 on the season.

The Musketeers began their weekend at Corcoran Field on Friday against the Chicago State Cougars. 

An overtime goal in the 93rd minute by junior forward Karsen Henderlong gave Xavier a much-needed win after dropping their first game to the then-No. 1 ranked Indiana Hoosiers on Labor Day. Assisting Henderlong was redshirt junior forward Felix Boe-Tangen, who marked his first assist of the season. 

Senior goalkeeper Matt Rosenberg had one save and now has an average of .60 goals allowed per game. Defenders Jansen Miller, Pol Hernandez and Taylor Crull played the full 93 minutes alongside sophomore midfielder Paul Bogarin. 

Xavier dominated the game in shots and ended the match with a 10-2 advantage. They also had a 7-1 advantage in shots on goal and were led by Henderlong with two in that department. 

Head coach Andy Fleming said after the game that he had a feeling this game “would be a tough one, especially since Chicago State has a solid defense.” Xavier improved to 4-1 while Chicago State fell to 2-2. 

Xavier returned to Corcoran Field on Sunday at 6 p.m. for a showdown with the Northwestern Wildcats from the Big Ten Conference. 

The Musketeers and Wildcats were even for most of the game until Boe-Tangen got past the defense and notched a late goal in the 87th minute. The Musketeers advance to 5-1 on the young season. 

Senior midfielder Justus Kauppinen assisted Boe-Tangen to make it his second assist and Boe-Tangen’s first goal of the season. 

Rosenberg recorded another shutout with one save and improved his goals against average to 0.50 through six contests. 

The Wildcats did have an advantage with shots with 10-9, but Xavier had more on goal with a 5-2 advantage. Xavier improved their non-conference resume to 2-1 against the Big Ten Conference, with their other win coming against the Ohio State Buckeyes.

The Musketeers also defeated Robert Morris yesterday afternoon by the score of 1-0 off a goal by Kauppinen in the 87th minute. It was the first game-winning goal of his career, and he had two shots. 

The team returns home to Corcoran Field for their Big East opener against the St. Johns Red Storm on Saturday at 7 p.m.