MINNEAPOLIS – Men's soccer hosted Finlandia University on Friday evening and won the contest 1-0 after a hard fought 90 minutes of play. North Central got the only score of the game from a penalty kick conversion by Josue Boutouli (Lome, Togo/Eagan). Boutouli was making a run into the box when he got tripped up and taken down for the penalty. Boutouli went on to finish the day with seven shots and the one goal.

The Rams were able to lock down on defense and keep Finlandia from scoring throughout the game. Gabe Hartwig (Eagle River, Wis./Northland Pines) had five saves for the Rams on the day. North Central outshot the Lions 20 to 11 and kept offensive pressure all evening. Jake Loukinen (Little Falls, Minn./Little Falls) had six shots on the day for the Rams mutiple of which almost found the back of the net. With this win the Rams improve to 5-1 on the season and one of the best starts in NCU Rams soccer history.

North Central will travel to Mankato, Minnesota for an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) game versus Bethany Lutheran on Saturday afternoon. The game will kick off at 4:15 p.m.