ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The 2021 Mississippi University for Women men's soccer team etched its name in the school record books, thanks to the squad's 5-1 road win at Warren Wilson College. In the battle of the Owls versus the Owls, it was The W notching win No. 8 of the season, surpassing the previous school record of seven victories in 2019.
 
"This was a big win tonight," MUW Head Coach Louis Alexander said. "Not only for our program, but for the athletic department as a whole. It shows and proves that we are making the necessary steps in becoming what we ultimately want to be: a championship program that does things the right way."
 
"We definitely still have some improvements to make, but we will enjoy this accomplishment. I couldn't be more proud of the players, my assistant coach, student managers, and everyone else at The W."
 
 Director of Athletics Jennifer Claybrook also had high-praise for the team's accomplishments.
 
"I am so proud of Coach Alexander and the team," Claybrook said. "Their hard work, dedication and resiliency have resulted in this historic win for our program. And we would be remiss if we did not also remember the program's alumni players and all the former staff members who laid the foundation for the successes we experience in 2021."
 
"We are looking forward to our final game on Friday (at Belhaven) and, hopefully, a post-season bid from the USCAA after that."
 
Alexander's Owls came out like gangbusters versus Warren Wilson, looking to make sure that they put their strongest case on the table for the USCAA selection committee. Against WWC, Terrell Johnson hit the post in the 6th minute, narrowly missing a goal. But in the 13th minute, teammate Reggi Pech got the MUW scoring started by netting his second goal in the past three matches, off a free kick, making it 1-0.
 
The W kept its first-half pressure on WWC, taking the next three shots of the contest before freshman phenom Vini Lopes found the back of the net on the fourth-straight MUW attempt, upping the margin to 2-0. It would be the beginning of a big match for Lopes and sent the teams to the halftime locker room with The W up, 2-0.
 
Coming out for the final 45 minutes, Paulo Carneiro advanced MUW's cushion to 3-0 just over two minutes into the period. Matthew Dobbins assisted on Carneiro's tally. In the 60th minute, the host WWC team would cut the margin to 3-1.
 
But goals by Lopes in the 78th and 88th minutes quashed any thoughts Warren Wilson might have had for a late comeback and helped solidify MUW's victory. For Lopes, it gave him 15 goals in what has become a magical first collegiate campaign for the Brazilian, and put him in a tie for first place in goals scored among the USCAA national leaders.
 
It also marked the third "hat trick" of 2021 for Lopes.
 
In the meantime, MUW goalkeeper David McCutchen faced six shots on-goal, making five saves. In all, The W had the upper hand shooting, with a total of 18-12 overtures at the nets.