Deacs Strike Early, Roll Past Loyola Chicago, 3-0

Tuesday, September 29

Winston-Salem, N.C.

7 p.m.

Wake Forest University

7-2-1, 3-1-0

Loyola Chicago

5-3-3, 0-1-1

Team	1	2	Final F
Loyola Chicago	0	0	0
Wake Forest	2	1	3

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9/29/2026 10:40:00 PM | Men's Soccer

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Wake Forest scores twice in the opening 10 minutes before adding another in the second half to earn its third-straight victory.

By: Dylan Shackelford

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Powered by a pair of goals in the opening 10 minutes, the Wake Forest men's soccer team continued its strong run of form Tuesday night, defeating Loyola Chicago, 3-0, at Spry Stadium.

The Demon Deacons improved to 7-2-1 overall with the victory, earning their third-consecutive win and sixth victory in their last seven matches. Wake Forest also moves to 5-0-1 at Spry Stadium this season and has now scored 19 goals while allowing just five in its six home matches.

Wake Forest wasted little time finding the back of the net. In the ninth minute, Jose Perez received a layoff from Joby Reid near the edge of the box and fired a shot that took a slight deflection before floating over the Loyola goalkeeper's head to give the Deacs the lead.

The goal was the second of the season for Perez and the seventh of his career, moving him to 17 career points.

Just 60 seconds later, Reid doubled the advantage. Ronnie Garcia received a pass from Mason Sullivan and delivered another quality cross into the box, where Reid finished first time in front of goal.

The goal and assist marked the first multi-goal-contribution game of Reid's career. The junior is now tied for the team lead with three goals this season to go along with two assists for eight points. He now has nine career goals, eight assists and 26 career points.

After carrying a 2-0 lead into halftime, Wake Forest continued to pressure the Ramblers before freshman Nolan Tinsley added the final goal in the 81st minute.

Tinsley received the ball in the box from Henry Rosenfeld, used his skill to beat his defender and shifted onto his left foot before firing past the Loyola goalkeeper for the first goal of his career. Tinsley has made an immediate impact in his freshman campaign after recording an assist in his collegiate debut at Virginia Tech. Of note, the freshman was the 12th different Demon Deacon to find the back of the net this season.

The victory also marked a career milestone for goalkeeper Owen Barnett, who recorded his first collegiate clean sheet. Filling in for Jonah Mednard, who remains away with the Haiti Men's National Team, Barnett made four saves to preserve the shutout.

Wake Forest outshot Loyola, 22-15, including a 7-4 advantage in shots on goal, while holding 64 percent of the possession. The Deacs also held a 5-2 edge in corner kicks.

With the win, Wake Forest now has 166 victories since the start of the 2015 season, moving into sole possession of first place nationally in wins during that span. Indiana entered the night tied with the Demon Deacons at 165 wins.

TOTAL WINS SINCE 2015

Wake Forest - 166
Indiana - 165
Clemson - 156
Georgetown - 154
Stanford - 147

Wake Forest also added another victory to its nation-leading home total under Muuss. The Deacs now own 122 home wins since the start of the 2015 season, extending their lead over Indiana, which has 109 during that span.

HOME WINS SINCE 2015

Wake Forest - 122
Indiana - 109
Clemson - 105
Georgetown - 99
Virginia - 97

HOW IT HAPPENED

Wake Forest took a 1-0 lead in the ninth minute when Jose Perez fired home after Joby Reid laid the ball back near the edge of the box.
The Deacs doubled their advantage one minute later as Ronnie Garcia sent a cross into the box for Joby Reid, who finished first time.
Wake Forest carried a 2-0 lead into halftime after outshooting Loyola, 11-5, in the opening 45 minutes.
The Demon Deacons continued to control the match in the second half, finishing with a 22-15 advantage in shots.
Tinsley capped the scoring in the 81st minute, beating his defender in the box before switching to his left foot and finishing for his first collegiate goal.
Barnett completed the shutout, making four saves as Wake Forest recorded its fourth clean sheet of the season.

BY THE NUMBERS

Jose Perez now has seven career goals and 17 career points.
Joby Reid recorded the first multi-goal-contribution game of his career and now has three goals, two assists and eight points this season. He has 26 career points.
Nolan Tinsley scored the first goal of his collegiate career.
Owen Barnett recorded his first career clean sheet and a career-high four saves.
Wake Forest has now scored 23 goals through 10 matches, averaging 2.30 goals per game.
The Deacs have scored 16 of their 23 goals in the first half this season.

FROM MUUSS
"I'm proud of the guys. Coming off of a tough NC State game on the weekend. This is a pressure game, it's one of those games you have to win in some ways. I thought the guys' focus was good. It was really chaotic. Hats off to Loyola Chicago and Coach Robson in his first year with what he's done with that program. That's the hardest-working, pressing team that we've seen. Even when we scored the third goal, it didn't break their back. They just kept working. So hats off to him and his staff.

I was proud of the way our guys played. I thought we were a little unlucky that we didn't finish some of our chances to maybe make it a little bit easier, but the guys played for 90 minutes. Even at the end, we were blocking shots and doing the little things that we think win championships. It was a game that we needed to have, and we got it.

Obviously, a Tuesday game where SMU is rested, but we have the No. 1 team in the country coming into town on Friday night. Hopefully the fans come out, the community comes out and supports the Deacs. We're going to need it, and we're going to use these next two days to regenerate, learn and see what we can do to prepare for the Mustangs."

UP NEXT
Wake Forest remains home Friday night, welcoming No. 1 SMU to Spry Stadium for the Genna Wiley Pink Match. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m., with the match streamed live on ACCNX.