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Contact: Elliott Carr,  Sports Information Graduate Assistant, 630-637-5302
 
Box Score

Sep. 1, 2014 -The North Central College men's soccer team opened the 2015 season with a 2-1 victory over the Carleton College Knights at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium on Tuesday night.

On a hot and humid evening that saw Cardinals head coach Matt Klosterman take advantage of the team's depth and play 22 players, the Cardinals fresh legs down the stretch proved too much for the Knights to handle.

Sophomore Karl Bappert opened the scoring with a header in the 25^th minute, following a spectacular flip throw-in from freshmen Jared Collier, and a header from senior Joey Faleni. It was a sequence of play that was sure to please Klosterman, as the team had practiced that play endlessly throughout the preseason.

Collier's unique flip-throw proved to be an attacking weapon for the Cardinals, and is sure to make opposing defenders nervous. The distance of the flip-throw combined with its accuracy will open up scoring avenues for the team all season long, as it did on Tuesday night.

Following a second half that saw the teams play to a stalemate for much of the half, junior Chandler Olah found the back of the net in the 79^th minute, thanks to an impeccably timed pass from freshmen Calen Colbert. Olah was dangerous all night, and that goal figures to be the first of several for the strongly-built forward this season.

North Central's high pressing style was not only in successful in preventing Carleton from scoring until the 85^th minute of the game, but will also act as a core attacking strategy throughout the season.

The Cardinals play next on Sep. 5 when they will visit Nebraska Wesleyan University (1-0) in Lincoln at 12 P.M. Live in game statistics and video can be accessed by clicking HERE.