PLANVIEW, TX – The Texas Wesleyan University men's soccer team (4-4, 0-1 SAC) dropped the conference opener to Wayland Baptist University (6-1, 1-0) after the Pioneer scored two second half goals to pull away with a 3-0 win on Tuesday night at Hilliard Field.
 
While the new look Rams have already won as many games as a rebuilding 2017 squad, the defending national champion Pioneer look poised for another deep post-season run.
 
Texas Wesleyan held their own for nearly the entire first half, giving the Pioneers a scare. In a scorless game, Jose Hincapie crossed a ball into the box and then after a deflection, scored an unassisted goal - his first goal of the season - in the 43rd minute. It was a tough pill to swallow for the Rams who - up until that point - had drawn two yellow cards on Wayland and had held their powerful offense to just 10 shots, three on target.
 
From there, it was a barrage of Wayland attacks. The Pioneers racked up 24 shots, calling Bastian Blumenberg to make six saves. Second-half goals came in the 59th and 82nd minutes.
 
Wayland's defense has been relentless to nearly every opponent they've faced. The Pioneers have shut out five of their first seven opponents and even took down Our Lady of the Lake University 3-2, who gave the Rams fits at Martin Field a few weeks ago. Like many before them, Texas Wesleyan didn't find many opportunities. Mateo Gonzalez put in two shots on goal - one in the 26th minute off his head and another in the 88th minute - but the rest of his teammates failed to find much space.
WHAT'S NEXT:
The Rams hope to bounce back against the Central Christian College Tigers on Saturday at noon. The two teams have split the first two meetings. Central Christian plays Southwest Assemblies of God on Thursday in their first conference action, but finished their non-conference schedule 7-1. Matias Nunez leads the team in both goals (7) and assists (7).