The Knox Prairie Fire men's soccer team defeated the Illinois Wesleyan Titans at home this Tuesday, winning 2-0. In the process of snapping their three game losing streak, Knox beat Illinois Wesleyan for the second time in their last three meetings. The Prairie Fire improved their record to 2-4 on the season.

The Prairie Fire got off to a hot start in the first half, with their offense playing methodical, technical soccer. After trading shots and holding strong on defense, smart passes by Pedro Moura and Joel Sanchez saw Giuseppe Ceschia score a great goal in the 10th minute, putting Knox up 1-0. After this, Knox's control of the game was solidified, with no more shots from Illinois Wesleyan coming on target for the rest of the half. By contrast, Knox doubled its lead in the 31st minute, with another Sanchez assist setting up Joey Dorgan, Jr. to rocket home a shot. After another quiet 15 minutes, the halftime whistle blew, and Knox sat with a comfortable lead.

Both teams came out of the gates with a much more physical tone, with Knox and Illinois Wesleyan fighting tooth and nail for possession. A total of 5 yellow cards were issued in the second half, and many more fouls were given. The Prairie Fire found an advantage in this playstyle, as well, as they outshot the Titans 4-2 and also never were seriously threatened on the defensive side, either. As a result, they coasted through the half with relative ease, and secured the victory as the final whistle sounded.

"We finally saw some of our chances come to fruition," said head coach Brian O'Connor. "We have had some very good shots the last few games, so it was nice to see Giuseppe and Joey find the back of the net. We are playing good soccer right now, but we still need to clean a few things up."

Knox looks to add another win to their total when they play host to Simpson College this Saturday at 11:00 a.m.