The UW-Whitewater men’s soccer team went 3-0 on the week to take their record to 10-4-3 on the season.

Wins over Monmouth, Marian, and UW-Platteville have given the Warhawks a confidence boost as the regular season winds down.

“It definitely gives us momentum, we haven’t been on a very consistent streak this year but our coaches emphasized this week we had to win-out and couldn’t have any mistakes,” junior midfielder Isaac Monson said. “I think everybody was able to appreciate the importance of the games, especially the Platteville game, and we were able to show ourselves that if the concentration is there we can get the results we want.”

The week started with a 1- 0 victory over over Monmouth College at Peacock Park Oct. 12 in Monmouth, Illinois.

Senior midfielder Michael Salm scored the game-winner and his first goal of the season in the 57th minute after a rapid attack by the Warhawks to start the second half.

UW-W tallied four corner kicks and two shots in the first six minutes of the second frame.

Salm had the only shot on goal, and it was enough to put the Warhawks up for good. Junior goalkeeper Chris Lucatorto earned his second solo shutout of the season.

In their last road game of the regular season, the Warhawks topped Marian University 1-0 on Oct. 15.

The Warhawks outshot the Sabres 4-2 in the first half, but the score remained 0-0 at halftime.

“We have been able to lean on our set pieces this year, there haven’t really been a lot of teams that are able to cope with our physicality and stop us from scoring when we want,” Monson said.

The Warhawks finally broke through and took the lead for good when sophomore midfielder Jake Santellano headed one past the keeper in the 66th minute to give the Warhawks a 1-0 lead.

As the finale of the week, the Warhawks played the annual Shaymus Guinn Cup and defeated UW-Platteville 2-1 on Oct. 16 at home.

The Shaymus Guinn Cup was a cup created to honor Coach Tony Guinn’s son, Shaymus, who passed away in December 2012 at the age of 11 after a five-year battle against E-Wing Sarcoma and chemo-induced acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

“It never gets easier to see the reason that we play this game,” Guinn said. “I would never wish this upon anyone. But I hope that for players on both sides he serves as an inspiration to make life what you can and to work every single day to fulfill your life.”

The Warhawks started the match off by applying pressure on the Pioneers defense early. Sophomore midfielder Taylor Ortiz sent a cross into the box in the eighth minute which found the foot of senior forward Dylan Hottsmith, who punched the ball past the keeper for a 1-0 Warhawk lead.

Ten minutes later, Monson took the ball down the right sideline and launched it towards the goal where it was redirected into the net by a Platteville defender and gave the Warhawks a 2-0 lead.

Moments later, the Pioneers cut the lead in half on a successful penalty kick.

Whitewater had another opportunity thwarted by Platteville when a Monson header off of a senior defender Jordan Kayser corner was denied by a Platteville defender on the goal line in the 51st minute.

Platteville nearly tied the match in the 71st minute but a header from a corner kick glanced off the crossbar and out of play. Another opportunity in the 84th minute was saved by Lucatorto who made four saves in the match earning the win.

“It’s a huge relief that I can be confident in my seniors each and every game,” Guinn said. “I know they will step up and perform. They lead the way with age, experience and knowledge.”

This was the first game of a four game homestand for the Warhawks. Next up, the Warhawks will host North Park at 7 p.m. on Oct. 19 at Fiskum Field.