North Central College Cardinals

Contact: Rachel Balinao, Athletic Communications Graduate Assistant, rabalinao@noctrl.edu 

Sep. 1, 2026 - Returning to the pitch for the 2026 season, the North Central College men's soccer program added a tally to the win column with a 3-1 victory over Illinois Institute of Technology on Tuesday night, marking the Cardinal's fourth straight win over the Scarlet Hawks.

Carrying the possession and pressure throughout the opening half, the Cardinals ripped off five shots, with two forcing IIT goalkeeper Thomas to make a save. After Joseph Sargent was taken down in the box, North Central was awarded a penalty kick that Aleks Duncevic calmly slotted into the net to give the Cardinals the lead 22 minutes into the match.

Sargent was the final Cardinal to get a shot off in the first 45 minutes, sending a low shot toward the center that was saved. The Scarlet Hawks found a brief spark late in the half, firing two shots high, but North Central entered the break leading 7-3 in shots.

Within the opening four minutes of the second half, the Scarlet Hawks found their equalizer, placing the ball low into the back of the net to make it 1-1. Refusing to let the momentum slip away, Duncevic played a ball over the top of the IIT backline to find Sargent, who headed it over the goalkeeper to put North Central back on top.

The teams traded shots over the following 20 minutes, with Vincent Stanislao coming up big with a high save to keep the Cardinals in front. With the clock winding down, Duncevic once again sparked the Cardinal attack, receiving the ball in midfield and threading it through to Sargent. After his initial shot was saved, Sargent never gave up on the play, collecting the rebound and firing it into the right corner to put the final stamp on the 3-1 win and secure North Central's first victory of the season. 

In the match, the Cardinals led in shots 11-10, shots on goal 7-2 and corner kicks 7-4. Stanislao recorded one save on the night, while Thomas finished with four.

The Cardinals hit the road again, traveling down the street to Lisle, Ill., to face Benedictine University on Sep. 3 at 7 p.m. inside the Village of Lisle-Benedictine Sports Complex.