JACKSONVILLE, Ill. – Grinnell College's men's soccer team faced a tall task Saturday with a matchup against the squad with the best non-conference record among all Midwest Conference teams.
The Pioneers rose to that challenge, knocking off Illinois College 3-1 in the league opener for both teams. It marked Grinnell's seventh win in a row over the Blueboys, dating back to 2015.
After a defensive 0-0 stalemate in the opening half, the Pioneers reeled off two goals in a seven-minute span on their way to victory. Grinnell moved to 4-4 with the win, while the Blueboys dipped to 5-3-1.
Noah Guyton '23, who leads the league in goals scored, did nothing to tarnish that figure as he collected his sixth and seventh tallies of the season.
Jaxon Willoughby '26 was also in the act, scoring once and recording two assists.
The teams combined for 13 shots in the first half, with Grinnell taking seven, but neither team could find the back of the net. That all changed four minutes into the second stanza when Willoughby recorded his third goal of the season on an assist by
Caleb Hoereth '24. It was Hoereth's second assist of the year.
Illinois College tied it up a minute later, but then Guyton gave the Pioneers the lead for good in the 56
th minute and added another goal in the 72
nd minute. Both goals were assisted by Willoughby, who now has a team-best three on the season. Guyton's goals boosted his career total to 10.
Guyton had four of Grinnell's shots,
Peter Murphy '25 and
Matias Bambi '23 had two each and
Ryan Huang '26,
Dylan Maddux '25, Willoughby,
Nick Fahmy '26 and
Sam Heller '23 had one apiece.
Carter Benson '24 had a strong effort at keeper, posting four saves.
Grinnell has another big test coming up Tuesday when MWC preseason favorite Knox Colleg comes to town. Kickoff at Springer Field is set for 4:30 p.m.
