Northwestern University Athletics
Friday, October 31
Evanston, Ill.
6:30 p.m. CT
Northwestern
7-5-3, 2-4-2
2
vs
0
Indiana
11-5-1, 4-5-0
1
2
F
Indiana
0
0
0
Northwestern
0
2
2
Photo by: Henry Frieman/Northwestern Athletics
Northwestern Knocks Off No. 17 Indiana On Senior Night, 2-0
10/31/2025 9:51:00 PM | Men's Soccer
Martinez Santamaria, O'Reilly net goals in thrilling victory
EVANSTON, Ill. (October 31, 2025) — Throughout Northwestern's week of preparation for its Friday night matchup with No. 17 Indiana, the team stressed putting forth a complete performance.
Once the final buzzer sounded on a 2-0 Senior Night victory at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, the pregame mission reached a vehement fruition.
"We've been playing this way, and we finally rewarded ourselves by finishing our chances and keeping a zero at the back," head coach Russell Payne said. "Indiana is a very good team. Full credit to them. We showed up, and we met that level of intensity and level of effort that we needed."
Behind second-half goals from senior forward Alejandro Martinez Santamaria and first-year forward Aaron O'Reilly, the Wildcats (7-5-3, 2-4-2 Big Ten) secured the highest-ranked win of the Payne era over the Hoosiers (11-5-1, 4-5-0 Big Ten).
Senior goalkeeper Rafael Ponce de León recorded six saves to preserve his fifth shutout in 2025. Ponce de León said the team's collective defensive effort was something he'd never before seen on the pitch.
"This just highlights how special this group really is," Ponce de León said. "We had some unfortunate games to start the season, but in this game, everything clicked. We had the entire team — the coaches, the guys on the bench — with the energy, everything we put together. That was a complete performance."
During the initial 45 minutes of play, Northwestern weathered the visitors' consistent attacking pressure. While Indiana had five first-half corner kicks, the Wildcat backline held the Hoosiers to just one shot on goal in the frame.
After the halftime break, Northwestern began knocking on the doorstep in the final third. Junior forward Peter Riesz and Martinez Santamaria forced saves within the second half's first six minutes, but the breakthrough remained up for grabs.
In the 59th minute, the Wildcats nabbed the opener. Graduate student midfielder Joe Suchecki whipped in a corner kick, and the outswinging ball found junior defender Bryant Mayer on the backpost. Mayer sent a header across the face of goal to Martinez Santamaria, who bagged his second tally in a Northwestern kit to give the 'Cats a 1-0 lead.
"We have to fight and be dawgs," Martinez Santamaria said. "Fight for any means against them and make things hard for them. We did as we could, and it worked out."
Just six minutes later, O'Reilly tucked a right-footed effort into the right corner of the net, stretching the lead to 2-0. The first-year's finish came off a Ponce de León free kick from deep in the Northwestern half, which Riesz skipped into O'Reilly's path. Ponce de León is the first Wildcat goalkeeper to be credited with an assist since Miha Miskovic in 2019.
O'Reilly, who battled through injury throughout the week, has scored in back-to-back games.
"We knew what we recruited," Payne said of O'Reilly. "He's a special player. First-year players have to go through the growing pains, and he's gone through quite a few. He's a tough kid, and you see his toughness come through in games like this."
While the Hoosiers recorded 16 second-half shots — including five attempts on goal — Ponce de León stood on his head with several point-blank denials. Four of Ponce de León's six stops came within the final 15 minutes of play.
"It goes back to the idea of a complete performance," Ponce de León said. "A complete performance is nothing perfect. We're not going to get everything right, but we're gonna hold steady. We're going to do exactly what we need to do, and we're gonna get a result no matter what."
The Wildcats will return to action on the road on Tuesday, November 4, when they'll take on Wisconsin. Kickoff from the McClimon Soccer Complex in Madison, Wis. is set for 7 p.m. CT.
Once the final buzzer sounded on a 2-0 Senior Night victory at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, the pregame mission reached a vehement fruition.
"We've been playing this way, and we finally rewarded ourselves by finishing our chances and keeping a zero at the back," head coach Russell Payne said. "Indiana is a very good team. Full credit to them. We showed up, and we met that level of intensity and level of effort that we needed."
Behind second-half goals from senior forward Alejandro Martinez Santamaria and first-year forward Aaron O'Reilly, the Wildcats (7-5-3, 2-4-2 Big Ten) secured the highest-ranked win of the Payne era over the Hoosiers (11-5-1, 4-5-0 Big Ten).
Senior goalkeeper Rafael Ponce de León recorded six saves to preserve his fifth shutout in 2025. Ponce de León said the team's collective defensive effort was something he'd never before seen on the pitch.
"This just highlights how special this group really is," Ponce de León said. "We had some unfortunate games to start the season, but in this game, everything clicked. We had the entire team — the coaches, the guys on the bench — with the energy, everything we put together. That was a complete performance."
During the initial 45 minutes of play, Northwestern weathered the visitors' consistent attacking pressure. While Indiana had five first-half corner kicks, the Wildcat backline held the Hoosiers to just one shot on goal in the frame.
After the halftime break, Northwestern began knocking on the doorstep in the final third. Junior forward Peter Riesz and Martinez Santamaria forced saves within the second half's first six minutes, but the breakthrough remained up for grabs.
In the 59th minute, the Wildcats nabbed the opener. Graduate student midfielder Joe Suchecki whipped in a corner kick, and the outswinging ball found junior defender Bryant Mayer on the backpost. Mayer sent a header across the face of goal to Martinez Santamaria, who bagged his second tally in a Northwestern kit to give the 'Cats a 1-0 lead.
"We have to fight and be dawgs," Martinez Santamaria said. "Fight for any means against them and make things hard for them. We did as we could, and it worked out."
Just six minutes later, O'Reilly tucked a right-footed effort into the right corner of the net, stretching the lead to 2-0. The first-year's finish came off a Ponce de León free kick from deep in the Northwestern half, which Riesz skipped into O'Reilly's path. Ponce de León is the first Wildcat goalkeeper to be credited with an assist since Miha Miskovic in 2019.
O'Reilly, who battled through injury throughout the week, has scored in back-to-back games.
"We knew what we recruited," Payne said of O'Reilly. "He's a special player. First-year players have to go through the growing pains, and he's gone through quite a few. He's a tough kid, and you see his toughness come through in games like this."
While the Hoosiers recorded 16 second-half shots — including five attempts on goal — Ponce de León stood on his head with several point-blank denials. Four of Ponce de León's six stops came within the final 15 minutes of play.
"It goes back to the idea of a complete performance," Ponce de León said. "A complete performance is nothing perfect. We're not going to get everything right, but we're gonna hold steady. We're going to do exactly what we need to do, and we're gonna get a result no matter what."
The Wildcats will return to action on the road on Tuesday, November 4, when they'll take on Wisconsin. Kickoff from the McClimon Soccer Complex in Madison, Wis. is set for 7 p.m. CT.
Team Stats
IU
NU
Goals
0
2
Shots
22
12
Shots on Goal
6
6
Saves
4
6
Corners
13
5
Fouls
7
10
Scoring Plays
Alejandro Martinez Santamaria (2)
Assisted By: Bryant Mayer , Joe Suchecki
GOAL by NU Martinez Santamaria, Alejandro Assist by Mayer, Bryant and Suchecki, Joe.
58:22
Aaron O'Reilly (4)
Assisted By: Peter Riesz , Rafael Ponce De Leon
GOAL by NU O'Reilly, Aaron Assist by Riesz, Peter and Ponce De Leon, Rafael.
64:56
Game Leaders
Shots
3
SOG
3
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
1
SOG
1
Goals
1
Assists
0
Shots
4
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
Shots
2
SOG
1
Goals
0
Assists
1
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's Soccer
D
/ Men's SoccerF
/ Men's SoccerM
/ Men's SoccerM
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