At home last Saturday the Northwestern men’s soccer team took on the 12th-ranked Baker University Wildcats in a soccer match that would end in a heartbreaking loss for NW in double overtime. The final score was 1-2 with the winning goal being scored by BU in the 108th minute.
NW and BU went scoreless throughout the first half. Both teams were evenly matched, going back and forth with each other, which yielded a variety of chances for both teams. The first goal of the match came at the 39th minute with a long-range strike from BU, allowing the Wildcats to take the lead. However, BU’s lead did not last long; five minutes later NW responded with a goal of their own. In the 44th minute junior Tyler Limmer put forth a great individual effort beating the BU defense and, in a 1v1 against the goalkeeper, managed to carefully put the ball away. The goal from Limmer was his first this season.
The Raiders entered into overtime with only 10 players due to a series of peculiar events which resulted in junior Jacob Garcia-Nieto being shown both yellow cards and eventually a red card. The event occurred after Garcia-Nieto was removed from play due to an injury. After being tended to by the athletic staff, he returned to the sideline and waited to be waved back into play by the center referee. Garcia-Nieto believed he was waved in, but after a discussion with the referee, it was determined he had not been let back into play.
The game-ending goal came in the final minutes of the second overtime period with BU scoring the winning goal with a well-executed cross from right to left which was then pushed past the NW goaltender junior Matt Scott, who had 9 saves throughout the game against BU.
The men’s record drops to 3-2-1 on the season. This upcoming weekend, the men’s soccer team travels to Indiana to play two games. The first is on Friday, Sept. 15 at Bethel College. On Saturday, Sept. 16th NW will take on Grace College (IND.). NW will also travel to play Buena Vista University at 7 P.M. on Wednesday, Sept. 20.
