Friday at Francis Field, the air was still, the fans were casually chatting with one another and the Washington University men’s soccer team was eager to kick off its first home game. In particular, the Bears seemed casual and free-spirited, in spite of the 0-3 record that preceded the night. And they capitalized on that energy, defeating Wartburg College 2-0 over the next 90 minutes for their first victory of 2018.

When the first half began, the Bears immediately took over as they possessed the ball; on their first attack, they fired their first shot on goal. Almost as if sensing what was to come, Wartburg pressed on the Bears, refusing to allow any more dangerous plays to occur. After much intense physical tussle, it seemed that Wash. U. would be forced back to their side on the field; however, everything changed around the 8th minute.

Freshman Aidan Ryan engaged on plenty of occasions with the Wartburg defense in the opening minutes, but this time, he successfully zipped past them, ran across the field and passed the ball to senior forward Ryan Sproule. The striker positioned himself close to the penalty area and without hesitation, fired a powerful kick, which swerved perfectly into the far corner of the net. Already, the night was in favor of the home team.

Wash. U. maintained possession of the ball for the rest of the half, while Wartburg dedicated themselves to minimizing the chance of further goals. While the Bears were mostly successful at keeping Wartburg at bay, Wartburg occasionally worked into the area, but they lacked the finishing touch to place them on the scoreboard. Junior goalkeeper Connor Mathes, at one point, was needed to block a powerful shot that could have tied the game. Both sides constantly made changes to readjust, but it became apparent that this night belonged to the Bears.

The majority of the second half also involved many scoring opportunities; however, the game was even more pressed toward the 60th minute. Wartburg, at that point, dedicated to thwarting the efforts of the Red and Green offense, gambled on the counterattack to surprise the Bears; however, Mathes once again intervened to keep a clean sheet.

The game then calmed down quite a bit, but the night was not quite over. Around the 80th minute, as the Bears struggled to advance forward, Ryan found an opening and sprinted all the way to outside the penalty area to shoot and score his first goal of the season and of his career as a Bear. Shortly afterwards, the game ended and Wash. U. earned their first victory this fall on its home field.

“I think we came out with a lot of purpose and started very well,” head coach Joe Clarke said.

However, he admitted that achieving the result was tough, as tonight’s game was one with few shots and clear opportunities.

“I thought Wartburg was good…with their defensive structure that they had,” Clarke said. “They did a good job and prevented us from being as good on the attack as we have been on the other games.”

Even though their previous three matches were all losses, the result correlated with the spirit and determination the Bears have demonstrated so far this season. While there is much room for improvement, this game could be the start of an improved outlook. Clarke and his players seemed pleased with the result; with the pressure of a losing streak alleviated, perhaps the Bears will find a way to balance defensive intensity with making sure the ball ends up inside the net.

The Bears face Fontbonne University in the Wydown Showdown Tuesday at 7 p.m.