NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. - The Manchester men's soccer team opened the 2023 season with two home contests against Alma College and Illinois Institute of Technology. 

Manchester 2, Alma 2

Despite several shots on goal in the final minutes, Friday night's match against the Scots ended in a 2-2 draw.
 
Alma struck first in the 14th minute with a goal by Ethan Swartzentruber. Manchester's Julian Keough (Indianapolis, Ind., Pike) leveled the match in the 39th minute with a goal assisted by Chris Wilson.
 
Alma picked up their second goal of the night just after halftime by Ethan Korson. It wasn't until the 71st minute that Harley Kruschwitz (North Manchester, Ind., Manchester) scored Manchester's second goal to again even the match. Conner Shaffer (Peru, Ind., Peru) is credited with the assist.
 
Despite a flurry of action in the final minutes, including a shot off the crossbar, Manchester was unable to break through Alma's defensive line before the final whistle.

The Black and Gold led the match with 16 shots, 9 on target. Manchester's goalkeeper Aaron Ketchmark (Kouts, Ind., Kouts) had two saves on the night.
 
Manchester 1, Illinois Institute of Technology 1

The Spartans and Scarlett Hawks faced off at Spartan Stadium for a non-conference match-up on Sunday. After 90 minutes of action, neither side was able to once again find the back of the net, resulting in a 1-1 tie. 

Manchester got on the scoreboard first, thanks to a goal by Chris Gerken (Huntertown, Ind., Carroll) in the 21st minute. Cory Mitchell (Maitland, Fla., Winter Park) assisted on the goal.
Illinois Teach scored in the 62nd minute of Sunday's match, tying up the score at 1 apiece.

The Spartan had six shots on the day, landing four in goal. Manchester goalie Aaron Ketchmark (Kouts, Ind., Kouts) collected two saves.

Up next, Manchester men's soccer will host the Adrian College Bulldogs on Friday, September 8. Match time is scheduled for 4:30 p.m. at Good Field.