The Northwestern men’s soccer team is riding a three-game winning streak, following wins last week against Nebraska Wesleyan, Mount Marty and Dakota Wesleyan. The Raiders were sharp all week with a total goal differential of +10 from the three games.
Senior Harri Edwards. Photo by David Li
In the third game of the streak, Northwestern shut out Dakota Wesleyan 2-0 on Saturday. After a slow-moving 0-0 first half, junior Gabriel Goncalves scored the game’s two goals on penalty kicks in the 70th and 79th minutes of play.
“We just go out and do our best to compete every night,” senior defender Matt Dowie said. “At the end of the day we are playing for God, and we do our best to represent Him, the school and each other.”
The game against Mount Marty on
Oct. 9 was far from close as the Raiders won 8-1.
Senior Harri Edwards scored the first goal in the fifth minute of play. It was followed a minute later by a goal from sophomore forward Ryan Johnson. Sophomore defender Nathan Huyser scored a goal in the 13th minute to put NW up by three.
Senior midfielder Nick Hengst scored goals in the 21st and 29th minutes, both on assists from Goncalves. In the 37th minute, sophomore forward Koray Karakas scored after beating the goalie off the dribble. Senior Jeriah Dunk scored off a rebound in the 41st minute, and Karakas scored his second goal of the match a minute later with an assist from senior Adam Potter.
In the second half NW had many opportunities but was unable to produce a goal. Every healthy player on the roster received playing time.
“When our team gets going, we are pretty hard to stop,” Dowie said. “We have days where we are unstoppable and days where we really need work. We are still working to get better and hope to keep building on our success.”
Against Nebraska Wesleyan on Oct. 5, the Raiders were coming off a loss in their previous match. NW got behind 1-0 early but responded quickly when Johnson scored in the 18th minute from an assist by Edwards. The Raiders out-shot the Prairie Wolves 14-1, but the score was tied 1-1 at the half.
In the second half, Johnson scored again in similar fashion, this time from an assist by senior Travis Systma in the 60th minute. After a Nebraska Wesleyan goal in the 81st minute, the game was tied at 2-2 and would take two overtimes to decide.
Late in the second overtime, sophomore Tukker Bogaard rebounded a free-kick to score the golden goal and give NW the win.
“I really like how deep our team is,” Dunk said. “Guys can step in any game and make an impact. We have a lot of talent at every position.”
The Raiders play again this Saturday against Concordia. Senior and parents’ night ceremonies will take place approximately 15 minutes before kick-off .
