The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater opened up the 2023 season with an exciting match against the visiting Sabres of Marian College. With just 15 minutes left in a scoreless game, Matt White (Bangor, Northern Ireland/Bangor Grammar) found Hayden Saul (Iowa Citty, Iowa/Liberty) who headed it over to Will Morgan (Naperville, Ill./Central) for the goal that would seal the win for Whitewater. 

The Warhawks came out of the gates aggressive, picking up a yellow card in the first five minutes, but tensions about the season opener cooled as they got into a rhythm and found good looks at the net. While the Warhawks had multiple opportunities to score, the Marian defense was able to stay strong and not let anything through. UW-Whitewater matched the Sabres on the defensive end, keeping Marian out of the back of the net by controlling the midfield and clearing the ball from their defensive end. Duncan Morgan (Oregon, Wis./Oregon) kept a clean sheet in the first half, making some acrobatic saves. 

Both teams kept things tight on defense to start the second half. The Warhawks found themselves with the possession for a majority of the time, but were unable to find the back of the net until 75 minutes in. Picking up some good field position from a Marian foul, the Warhawks went on the attack. A beautiful cross from Matt White (Bangor, Northern Ireland/Bangor Grammar) found Hayden Saul (Iowa Citty, Iowa/Liberty) who was able to place the perfect header for Will Morgan (Naperville, Ill./Central). Morgan found the back of the net to put the Warhawks up 1-0 with little time left.

The last 15 minutes of the game went back to featuring the defense of the Warhawks, detering Marian from making a comeback goal. Duncan Morgan (Oregon, Wis./Oregon) picked up the clean sheet with six total saves. 

The Warhawks will head out on the road for their next game against Rockford on Monday, September 4th. The Warhawks return back home for a double-header with the women's program. The women take on Loras College at 5 PM followed by the men's game against Wisconsin Lutheran at 7 PM.