Contact: Matthew Eaker, Sports Information Graduate Assistant, mreaker@noctrl.edu 

Oct. 15, 2022 - The North Central College men's soccer team kept their unbeaten streak alive as three second half goals sent them past the Carroll University Pioneers 3-2 on Saturday night inside Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. 

The Cardinals (11-0-4, 4-0-1 CCIW) came out firing early as Matteo Innocenti headed a Jacopo De Collibus cross on net but the Pioneers goalkeeper, Tyler Hanson punched it out of play, shutting down the early scoring attempt. The Pioneers put heavy pressure on the Cardinals defense sending two shots on net but Sid Marquardt was there to handle them. In the 12th minute, the Pioneers scored the first goal of the game as Ethan Pequignot finished off a Ryan Coughlin pass to put the Pioneers up 1-0. The Cardinals had an opportunity in the 25th minute as Parker Nimmer took down Jaziel Enriquez just outside of the box, earning a red card. Sam Abreu lined up for the free kick and was looking to get the Cardinals on the board but his shot was blocked, eliminating the Cardinals opportunity. The Cardinals fired off seven more shots but only one would be sent on net and they would head into the break down 1-0. 

The Cardinals were looking for an offensive spark in the second half and in the 61st minute, Aidan Westerberg would net his seventh goal of the season to tie the game up at one. Just three minutes later, the Cardinals would strike again as Jack Bonavia finished off an Innocenti pass to give the Cardinals their first lead of the night. North Central would keep the pressure on and in the 67th minute, Westerberg would find Innocenti in front of the net to put the Cardinals up 3-1 with 22 minutes left to play. The Pioneers would cut the lead to one in the 75th minute as a clearing attempt went wrong for the Cardinals and the ball would slip past Marquardt for an own goal. The Pioneers had one last push in them as Josh Gonzaga had an opportunity in the 83rd minute but his shot went wide right, giving the Cardinals a 3-2 win inside Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. 

Marquardt tallied three saves in the contest as he improved to 10-0-3 on the season. Tyler Hanson recorded five saves for the Pioneers. With this win the Cardinals have tied the single season record for unbeaten streak (15) and improved to 11-0-4 on the season. 

The Cardinals are back in action on Wednesday, Oct. 19 as they travel to Decatur, Ill. for a CCIW matchup with the Millikin University Big Blue. Gametime is set for 7:30 pm inside Frank M. Lindsay Field.

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