BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Northwest Nazarene men's soccer couldn't quite complete a comeback at Western Washington on Thursday night, falling to the Vikings 3-2.
The Nighthawks drop to 2-2-2 in GNAC play and 5-4-4 overall.
The Vikings struck first in just the ninth minute, earning a penalty kick that was converted by Joar Tidblom.
WWU tallied again just after halftime with a goal in the 54
th minute to go up 2-0.
The Nighthawks answered almost immediately, scoring their first goal in the 55
th minute when
Rylan McPherson found
Derek Remen just above the center of the box for a right-footed strike that snuck just inside the far post.
The Vikings responded just two minutes later, however, taking a 3-1 lead.
NNU cut the deficit to one again in the 72
nd minute.
Derek Johnson sent a great ball around a Viking defender to
Baraka Dayi on the near side, who slotted it to
Caleb Putney in the middle of the box for the goal.
The Nighthawks had a few chances in the final 10 minutes, including a pair of free kicks just outside the box, but were unable to find an equalizer.
NNU outshot WWU 17-11 overall and 6-5 on goal in the match.
The Nighthawks will now head across the border to take on Simon Fraser this Saturday at 11:00 a.m. Pacific in Burnaby. NNU is just one point ahead of SFU for third in the GNAC standings, so Saturday's result could be crucial for both teams as they look to qualify for the inaugural GNAC men's soccer tournament in November.
