DETROIT (10/1/13) – Sophomore Jason Leslie scored the game-winning goal in the 59th minute as the University of Detroit Mercy men's soccer team earned its first win of the 2013 season with a 3-1 victory over IPFW Tuesday night at Heffner Soccer Complex.

In the opening 10 minutes of the match, IPFW (0-9-1, 0-1) held a 5-0 advantage in the shooting column over the Titans, but some goaltending from junior Nathan Steinwascher, kept the Dons off the scoreboard.

Detroit (1-4-4) almost struck first in the 37th minute, but the shot from Kevin Pinkos went off the crossbar, and the Titans had another opportunity with a corner, but could not convert as the match remained scoreless heading into halftime.

It didn't take long to get things going in the second half as IPFW's Jose Rodriguez sent a cross to Oscar Uyamadu to put the Dons ahead 1-0 in the 49th minute.
 
Needing a goal, captain Matt Ybarra sprinted towards the box and drew a foul on IPFW, which set up a free kick for senior Adam Bedell, who found the left corner of the net to even the match at one in the 58th minute.
 
In the blink of an eye, after scoring his fourth goal of the season, Bedell was on the offensive once again. However, this time around the senior was the distributor, finding Jason Leslie, who had just checked in, chipped one over the out-stretched hands of the IPFW keeper, and the Titans led 2-1in the 59th minute.

"Well his first touch was a goal," said head coach Nicholas Deren about Leslie. "He gave us another dimension. He got on a lot of balls we served in the box, because of his jumping, and his speed, that's what you need from a center forward," added Deren.
 
Bedell did not allow UDM to take its foot off the gas, as he was sprinting down the field, and co-captain Ybarra sent one to Bedell, as he settled the rock to add another goal on the day and secure a 3-1 victory for the Titans.

 "I hope so," said Deren on gaining momentum after earning their first win. "I thought the second half we performed big time. I look at the box score, 16 shots, seven on goal in the second half, the quality of our team showed. We went down a goal, and we said we're not letting this happen again, and they responded to the challenge," Deren added.
 
UDM will jump back into Horizon League play on Saturday, Oct. 5 in a match up with Oakland at 7 p.m. at OU Soccer Field.

Titan fans, remember to follow #DetroitsCollegeTeam on Twitter and Instagram at @DetroitTitans and remember to like the Titans on Facebook.

Game Notes: The win over IPFW earned the Titans their first win of the season … UDM has scored three goals in two consecutive matches … By scoring two goals, it was Bedell's second multi-goal game in the last four contests.