Three goals in the first 11 minutes of play set the tone as the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men's soccer team defeated Finlandia University 5-0 Friday evening at Fiskum Field in Whitewater.
 
With the win, the Warhawks improve to 11-5-1 overall and secure their second victory in less than 24 hours, fourth in a row and tenth in their last twelve matches.
 
Sophomores Brad Ludwig (Appleton, Wis./Kimberly) and Steven Wright (Prior Lake, Minn./Prior Lake), along with freshman Jalen Holley (Milwaukee, Wis./Wauwatosa East), each scored a first half goal for the Warhawks, and for all three, it was their first of the season.
 
Ludwig's goal got things started in the fourth minute. He was assisted by Andres Villarreal (Racine, Wis./St. Catherine's).
 
Three minutes later Holley scored on a long pass from Mariano Carini (Whitefish Bay, Wis./Whitefish Bay), and four minutes after that Wright scored on a combination of passes from Ludwig and sophomore Jackson Ranck (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North).
 
At the half, UW-W led 3-0 after outshooting the Lions 15-2.
 
UW-W extended their lead to 4-0 with a goal by Yoshihiko Fukushima (Janesville, Wis./Janesville Craig)three minutes into the second half. Wright was credited with the assist.
 
Finlandia showed some life in the second half, testing freshman goalkeeper Jason Purlee (Byron Center, Mich./Byron Center) with four of shots on goal, but Purlee was in the right spot at the right time to keep the ball out of the net on each occasion. 
 
Freshman Ben Weltzien (Green Bay, Wis./Green Bay Preble) rounded out the scoring with an unassisted goal in the 74th minute to push the Warhawk lead to 5-0.
 
UW-W's underclassmen combined to score four goals and dish out five assists.
 
The Warhawks will return to action on Sunday when they travel to Rock Island, Illinois for a match against Augustana at 7 p.m.

---

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU

Men's NCAA Tournament First Round Recap

Men's NCAA Tournament Round Two Preview

TeamRank Presented By TeamSnap - Boys