Minneapolis, MN -- Tonight, the North Central University (NCU) men's soccer team returned to Elliot Park field for their Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) home opener against the visiting Bethany Lutheran College (BLC) Vikings. The Vikings have had the Rams' number for a while as the last time NCU defeated BLC was back in 2016. Tonight, one minimal weather delay early in the match set the stage for an action-packed first half that left the teams tied at 2-2. However, the Vikings broke loose in the second half with 5 total goals to defeat North Central 7-2. 

 A single Bethany shot and save by the North Central goalkeeper Trystin Procyk would be the only action before an unfortunate weather delay. After the break, the teams didn't take long to get right back on the attack. BLC would strike first in the 24th minute of play after a devastating NCU foul that gave the Vikings a penalty kick opportunity. Before the Rams could even catch their breath, Bethany was back on the attack and scored again to double their lead. In the 29th minute, a Vikings winger made a costly error as he tried to send a crosser at midfield and NCU's captain Rody Cuate Torres intercepted the pass and headed it to his speedy teammate Isaac Hinkle down the left sideline. With masterful touch, Hinkle passed the BLC defense and scored the first goal of his career to bring NCU to within one. North Central continued to play an aggressive style of defense, challenging the Vikings the full length of the field. This paid off as sophomore Alvin Wlejeh did a phenomenal job to take a ball off the BLC defender to break to the middle of the box and fire a rocket that went bar down to tie things up at 2-2. 

North Central played a very foul-ridden second half that ultimately gave the Vikings the motivation and momentum to get things rolling. After three NCU yellow cards to start the half, Bethany Lutheran took the lead with a goal in the 51st minute. They struck again in the 62nd to go up 4-2 on the Rams. NCU struggled to find any offensive opportunities as they could only muster 1 shot compared to 12 by the Vikings. Bethany tacked on three more goals, including another PK goal in the waning minutes of the game as tensions and emotions rose. NCU would eventually lose 7-2 to the Vikings at home. 

Today's box score can be found here.


Looking Ahead:

Men's Soccer returns to Minneapolis for another UMAC contest Wednesday against the Northland College Lumberjacks. Kick-off is slated for 4:30 PM. 

All fans are encouraged to tune into the official Rams Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter (X) pages for updates on men's soccer and all things NCU Athletics.