KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Avila men's soccer knew it was facing a tough test on Wednesday at The Z with Ottawa, one of the KCAC's top teams, coming to town. And after a tight first 45 minutes, the dam finally broke in the second half, leading the Braves (8-3-1, 7-1-0 KCAC) to a 7-0 win over the Eagles (2-11-1, 1-7-1 KCAC) in Kansas City.

The Braves are known for their high-powered offense, but the Eagles did a great job keeping them at bay over the front 45 minutes. Ottawa did get on the board 18 minutes in, but that was an own goal; otherwise, the Eagles were able to keep the Braves almost entirely at bay until the second half.

But before they could get to the second half, the tenor of the game changed in the final two minutes of the first period. Avila goalkeeper Johnathan Fager, who had been playing well with five saves in the first half, spilled a rebound and collided with Vladan Pavlovic, forcing Fager to leave with an injury. That set the stage for backup keeper Hamam Mustafa to make his Avila debut with less than two minutes left to play in the half – and he was tested early, making an excellent save off Lazar Milovic in the waning seconds to keep that 1-0 deficit intact into the intermission.

But the Braves would not be denied forever. Cale Scott capped off a nice passing play with a goal two minutes into the second half, and that got the ball rolling for the Braves. It was not a clinical performance by an elite offensive team, but Ottawa more than got the job done, scoring six times against Mustafa in the second half, including two from Pavlovic. Sam Kanda and Henri Kagay put shots on Ottawa starter Marko de Sa Faira, but the damage had been done: Ottawa cruised to a 7-0 victory.

 Avila now heads into the stretch run with only a few conference games remaining this season. Up first is a critical showdown with a reeling Bethany side this Saturday evening in Lindsborg, Kansas – a prime opportunity for the Eagles to pick up a needed win. The women kick off the doubleheader at 5:30 PM with the men to follow at 8; as always, you can watch all the action on the KCAC Network.