Box Score MORRIS, Minn. – The North Central men's soccer team was defeated by the University of Minnesota-Morris Cougars 3-0 this past Saturday afternoon on a beautiful fall day in Morris Minnesota. The meeting was the first and only time the teams met in the 2016 season and was registered as an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) game. Despite a stellar month of soccer for the Rams they were unable to find the back of the net or provide much of a threat to the Cougars.
The Cougars scored in the 23rd minute from Austin Keller and finished the first half with a 1-0 lead over the Rams. In the first half the Cougars outshot the Rams 4-1 with each team with one corner kick apiece.
In the second half the Rams tried to get the offense going with the help of Dennis Morales (Eagan, Minn./Eagan) and Josue Boutouli (Lome, Togo/Eagan) but were stifled by the Cougar defense. Minnesota-Morris doubled their lead in the 54th minute from an unassisted Bona Usha goal. Morris scored again in the 80th minute this time from Joshua Bartels and secured the win 3-0 over the Rams. The Cougars outshot the Rams 10-3 in a game that tallied 31 fouls combined.
Gabe Hartwig (Eagle River, Wis./Northland Pines) was in net for the Rams and recorded three saves against the six shots on goal he faced.
The Rams have two games left in the regular season both at home in Elliot Park. Tuesday Oct. 25 the Rams will face Bethany Lutheran at 1 p.m. and Friday Oct. 28 the Rams will play Wisconsin-Superior at 1 p.m. Both games will have live video and stats which can be found here.
