MILWAUKEE, Wis. -- The Northern Illinois University men's soccer team fell to Milwaukee, 3-2, on Tuesday night (Sept. 12) as the Panthers reclaimed the Lewang Cup for the first time since 2017. Parker Jeppson (Lincoln, Neb./Lincoln Southwest) and Taisei Arima (Machida, Japan/Seiryo) scored on either side of halftime for NIU but a goal in the final minute of the first half for Milwaukee proved to be the game-winner. 

"We are really disappointed to have lost the game and to hand over the Lewang Cup," said NIU head coach Ryan Swan. "We got off to a really bright start and had some chances early on, but we've given up three goals in the first half and it is going to be difficult to win games when you are doing that."

Raul Medina opened the scoring for Milwaukee from the penalty spot in the 10th minute. Bienvenu Djunga earned the penalty on a foul that appeared to occur outside the box, but the referee pointed to the penalty spot and Medina made no mistake, giving the home side an early advantage.

NIU pulled level in the 27th minute as Jeppson scored his first goal of the season and the second of his career. Sam Divis (Noblesville, Ind./Noblesville) made a run into the box down the right wing and his low cross took a deflection, falling kindly into the run of Jeppson who fired a shot low into the corner past Milwaukee goalkeeper Daniel Ibarra to pull the Huskies level. 

Milwaukee regained the lead in the 32nd minute through Djunga. Medina played a ball from near the endline toward Djunga on the edge of the six-yard box. The pass took a deflection off a Huskie to Djunga whose shot from close range found the net off the foot of NIU goalkeeper Jakub Rojek (Chicago, Ill./Von Steuben).

In the 40th minute, Patrick Coleman (Antioch, Ill./Antioch Community) and Kevin Kelly (Dublin, Ireland/St. Joseph Rush) combined well on a one-two before Coleman was clipped inside the box. Arima stepped up to take the penalty for the Huskies, but Ibarra made an outstanding save to keep the Panthers in front. 

Just before halftime, Milwaukee doubled its advantage as Alan Lopez volleyed a shot from the top of the 18-yard box into the side-netting past Rojek to give the Panthers a 3-1 lead at the interval. 

NIU cut the Milwaukee lead in half before the hour mark as Arima scored his second goal of the season. Arima latched on to a ball from midfield from Diego Maynez (El Paso, Texas/Lone Star) just inside the box running to his left and firing a shot on the half-volley back across his body inside the far post beyond Ibarra to bring the Huskies back within a goal. 

The visitors pushed for an equalizer throughout the final 30 minutes, including a pair of chances in the 72nd minute as Angel Rodriguez (Elgin, Ill./Ignite Christian Academy) and Arima each had shots blocked by Panther defenders in the box as Milwaukee hung on to reclaim the Lewang Cup. 

NIU will return to action on Saturday, Sept. 16, as the Huskies host 15th-ranked Missouri State in their first Missouri Valley Conference contest. Kickoff against the Bears is scheduled for 6 p.m. and admission is free of charge.