September 16, 2015 By Justin St. Peter

For many soccer teams, giving up fewer than one goal a game is a good accomplishment. The No. 19 (D3soccer.com) Warhawks men’s soccer team is doing that and more, allowing only one goal in its first five games of their season.
Coach Tony Guinn said the defense has accomplished his coaching goal.
“I have always wanted a goals against average of under 1.0,” Guinn said. If you give up less than 1.0 goals a game, then I think you can be successful.
The defense was not the only strength of the ’Hawks squad as they won their seasoning opening match against Wisconsin Lutheran College 5-0 on Sept. 1 in Milwaukee.
Sophomore forward Dylan Hottsmith, senior midfielder Kyle Ricely, freshman forward Zach Manibog, junior midfielder Jordan Kayser, and sophomore midfielder Adrian Castillo all tallied goals in the match who were bolstered by an 8-3 advantage on shots on goal.
Senior goalkeeper Alex Buchman made all three saves.
“Our goalie has made some incredible saves,” Kayser said.
The ’Hawks won its eighth overtime match under Guinn’s leadership the following day when Hottsmith scored and assisted freshman midfielder Taylor Ortiz’s game-winner in overtime against the Milwaukee School of Engineering at home.
The game-winner came in the 98th minute when Hottsmith received a pass and sped down the right sideline before firing a low cross with his right foot past three defenders to Ortiz who stood all alone in front of the net.
Guinn was quick to praise Hottsmith’s early season play.
“I am not surprised he is our leading goal-scorer,” Guinn said. “We haven’t had a goal-scorer like him since I have been at Whitewater.
Despite giving up the only goal allowed all year, Buchman tallied four saves in the win.
The ’Hawks then won a pair of games in Minnesota, 2-0 against Carleton College and 1-0 against St. Olaf University.
The team had many players see action against Carleton on Sept. 4, as it was their third game in four days.
Hottsmith found senior midfielder Sam Novak to take an early lead in the 5th minute that the Warhawks never relinquished.
Freshman defender Jeremy Cohen’s shot was blocked in the 79th minute before freshman midfielder Deklan Corbett recovered the ball and netted his first collegiate goal, acting as the ’Hawks’ security blanket.
The St. Olaf College Oles and Warhawks played an action-packed match on the road on Sept. 6 that saw a combined 24 shots, with 12 on goal.
Hottsmith tallied the game’s only goal in the 52nd minute off a pass from freshman midfielder Carmel Nezien.
Buchmann was kept busy in goal and tallied seven saves.
The ’Hawks extended their shutout streak at home against Benedictine University on Sept. 13 with a 1-0 victory.
Buchman stopped two shots to extend the ’Hawks shutout streak to 320 minutes.
Hottsmith drew a penalty in the box in the 25th minute, which set up Kayser, the team’s primary penalty kicker, to give the ’Hawks its only goal of the game.
“I was out for the whole year after surgery on my hip,” Kayser said. “This year, I am older and the game is slowing down more for me.”
The Warhawks will be back in action on Sept. 18 on the road against Carthage College at 7 p.m. in Kenosha in the first match of the “Battle on the Border.”