NEW LONDON, CT. – Closing out the final game of the regular season in high-scoring fashion, the Wesleyan men's soccer team left New London with a 3-1 NESCAC triumph over Connecticut College on Tuesday evening, jumping Connecticut in the NESCAC standings to clinch the No. 5 seed from Connecticut's Freeman Field.

Mathis Blanc '26 was quick to keep the Camels (8-2-5 overall, 3-2-5 NESCAC) at bay early after the opening kickoff, making a save on a high kick in front of the goal that served as the Camels' first scoring opportunity. While neither team had clear possession with high turnover at the midfield and full field play, Chris Porte '25 had the first Cardinals' (7-3-5 overall, 4-3-3 NESCAC) boot inside from Mateo Neighbors '25 but the kick angled high and wide. Neighbors drove the Cardinals' offense through the first half, controlling the line and setting up plays from the near left corner.

Porte drew a Cardinals penalty kick at 16:32, getting tripped up by Camel's goalkeeper Peter Silvester inside the box on a rushed play. Stepping up for the kick was Joshwin Jennings '27, and he nailed the goal to open scoring with his third of the season. With one goal down, the Cardinals held the pressure to the Camels and gained a two-goal lead at 27:56 thanks to Will Martin '26 on the transition. On the move, Porte deflected a pass from Dylan Clack '27 out at the midline, his header finding Martin charging his way inside the box. Martin dangled the ball around a Camels defender before his left foot buried the ball high center.

The Camels drew their own penalty kick at 11:02 but missed, sending the ball over the head of Blanc. Calder Truesdale '28, now in for the Cardinals, nearly scored but his attempt was deflected with six minutes to go.

It wasn't long before Yousuf Saeed '26 opened the second half with the Cardinals' third and final goal of the evening at 49:00. Collecting a short pass from Porte as he crossed the field, Saeed shot from the top of the box off his right foot and nailed the left corner goal. Saeed nearly scored back-to-back goals on a Neighbors breakaway but did not have enough power on the final shot.

Down three goals, the Camels were desperate to break a Cardinals shutout and were successful on a second penalty kick opportunity, scored by Max Haberman. With less than 10 minutes remaining Blanc made a save on a long free kick made by Silvester, but the Camels blocked Blanc's clear. Scoring at the 78-minute mark, the goal was called off by the officials, allowing the Cardinals to hold for the final 12 minutes.

Blanc finished the evening with three saves and finishes the regular season 7-3-4 overall. Silvester closed the game with four saves for the Camels.

As the No. 5 seed, the Cardinals will face fourth-seeded Williams College on Saturday, Nov. 2, in Williamstown, MA. Williams is ranked 20^th nationally.