KALAMAZOO, Mich. - Missouri State men's soccer (5-2-1, 2-0-1 Missouri Valley Conference) had its first draw of the season in an MVC championship rematch at No. 11 Western Michigan Broncos (6-0-4, 1-0-2 MVC) on Saturday. The Broncos owned the lead for about 75 minutes, but senior forward Jesus Barea's 10th goal of the season in the 80th minute gave the Bears a result against the defending conference champions.

"We just aim to be the best team we can possibly be every day," head coach Michael Seabolt said. "These guys are super hungry, super humble."

The first half got off to a fiery start with the Broncos firing a shot within the first 30 seconds that led to a WMU corner kick. The Bears got their first opportunity at the net just minutes later when senior forward Daniel Verdirosi launched a shot just over the crossbar.

Similar to Missouri State's last outing against UIC, the Bears trailed early thanks to a goal in the sixth minute by WMU redshirt junior forward Roni Sylejmani. The goal was the Kosovo native's third of the season and marked the second straight match Sylejmani found the back of the net. 

The goal was Western Michigan's lone shot on goal. The Bears have allowed just five shots on goal in as many matches.

"We're not interested in anyone's ranking," Seabolt said. "We respect the heck out of everyone we play. Western Michigan is a top team. We're just going to stay humble and prove who we are."

Western Michigan set the tone early with four shots in the first 12 minutes. However, the Bears fought back down a score by firing four unanswered shots in about a 27-minute span.

One of Missouri State's best chances for an equalizer in the first half was on a cross from senior forward Fumiya Shiraishi to fellow senior forward James Jennings, whose header went right into the hands of goalkeeper Colin Welch.

Jennings was fouled on the run just as he entered the goal area and was awarded a penalty kick. Jennings' attempt was blocked as Welch dove to his left to knock the ball out for a corner in the final seconds. Missouri State is 1-for-3 in penalty kicks this season with three different players.

The Bears outshot the Broncos 8-6 in the first 45 minutes.

Missouri State maintained its control of possession for much of the second half. The Bears put up an astounding 12 shots in the second frame, but it was the eighth shot in the half that prevented Missouri State from being shut out for the first time this season. 

Senior forward Jesus Barea scored his national lead-tying 10th goal of the season at the 79:19  mark off an assist from Shiraishi. It was Shirashi's second assist this season, his first also being on a Barea goal against Kansas City earlier in the month. 

"It was a great goal," Seabolt said. "He took it well. It was well earned by the team. We created a ton of chances and had a lot of good opportunities and I'm proud of him for taking the chance and scoring the goal."

Barea is the first Bear to reach double-digit goals in a season since Matthew Bentley scored 15 in 2019. Barea has scored 10 of the team's 14 goals this season.

Western Michigan was held to just one shot in the second half, which came on a free kick after Barea's goal to add another long stretch without a Broncos attempt at the net. Missouri State put up four more shots after Barea's goal to tally a season-high total of 20 shots. MoState kept knocking on the door with a season-high 10 corner kicks evenly split across each half.

The result marked the first time the two teams have tied in their five all-time matches, keeping the all-time series tied at 2-2-1. 

"Western Michigan deserves the credit they've got for being a top team," Seabolt said. "This league deserves the credit for being a top league. We think The Valley is one of the best conferences in the country and we play some of the best teams in the country when we play in our league."

Missouri State will conclude its three-match stretch away from home with a neutral site game at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City on Tuesday, Oct. 1 against Creighton (4-2-2, 0-1-0 Big East). Kickoff is set for 6:00 p.m. CT.