WINFIELD, Kan. – Southwestern got the scoring started less than three minutes into the match, and a shorthanded Eagles side (2-9-1, 1-5-1 KCAC) could never recover, leading the Moundbuilders (4-6-0, 2-4-0 KCAC) to a 4-0 win on Wednesday night in Winfield.

Despite what the final scoreline might suggest, this was a wide-open game for much of the night. Both teams played physically, committing more than a dozen fouls each, and both teams had scoring opportunities: Avila put seven shots on net and Southwestern fired eight, the critical difference was that the Builders scored on four of those opportunities while the Eagles scored on none of theirs.

One of those opportunities came just minutes into the match. Avila's Johnathan Fager made a save off Builder veteran Mamadou Diarra just past the 2-minute mark, but Hector Hernandez scored off the ensuing corner to put the home team in front less than three minutes in. After a quiet first 30 minutes, the Eagles started to swarm late in the first half – Avila fired shots on goal in the final 10 minutes of the half, but SC goalie KJ Masso managed to stop all of them and keep the Eagles off the board.

And on the other end of the field, Southwestern took advantage of its chances. Carlos Cantu scored in the 40^th minute, and the Builders then got goals less than five minutes before the end of the first half and less than five minutes after the start of the second half – almost exactly five minutes of game time, bookending the halftime break, separated the final two tallies and put the scoreline out of reach.

Even now trailing by four, Avila kept firing in a bid to push back. Sam Kanda, Thomas Mikkelson and AJ Rankin all got shots on goal in the second half, but Masso and the Southwestern defense did their parts to keep the clean sheet intact. Masso turned Rankin away three times in the game to help the Builders preserve a 4-0 home win.

Up next, Avila returns home to Kansas City to face conference rivals Kansas Wesleyan this Saturday, October 7 at The Z. Women's soccer kicks off the doubleheader at noon with the men to follow around 2:30; as always, admission to the games is free, and you can watch all the action live and for free on the Avila Sports Network with Tim Hackett on the call from Kansas City.