NAMPA, Idaho - Northwest Nazarene Men's Soccer came up just short against Western Washington on Thursday night, falling 1-0 at the NNU Soccer Field.
The Nighthawks controlled much of the attacking pressure throughout the match, finishing with a 17-12 advantage in shots and putting four attempts on goal. Western Washington goalkeeper Charlie Dyer stopped all four to keep NNU off the scoreboard.
NNU generated the first chances of the match, with
Alex Barragan,
Caleb Putney and Illyès El Yansli each recording attempts inside the opening 10 minutes.
Western Washington broke through in the 23rd minute.
Elijah Brockl initially made a save on an attempt from Landon Schulze, but Jose Perez found the back of the net on the rebound to put the Vikings up 1-0.
Maddox Marcelli nearly provided an answer in the 30th minute, forcing Dyer into a save, but the Vikings carried the one-goal advantage into halftime.
The Nighthawks came out aggressively after the break, putting two shots on goal in the opening three minutes of the second half. Putney forced a save in the 46th minute before
Abdullahi Sharif tested Dyer again less than two minutes later.
NNU continued to push for the equalizer, eventually outshooting Western Washington 11-7 in the second half.
Youssef El Madkouri put another attempt on frame in the 64th minute as the Nighthawks continued to pressure the Viking defense.
The Nighthawks were reduced to 10 men when
Rylan McPherson received a red card in the 74th minute. Just moments earlier, Brockl kept NNU within one by stopping an Edgar Serrano penalty kick. Brockl followed with two more saves to keep the Nighthawks it it, despite being a man-down.
Despite playing a man down, NNU continued searching for an equalizer. The Nighthawks earned two corner kicks between the 79th and 81st minutes and produced late attempts from
Jim Wagenaar and Marcelli, but could not find the tying goal.
The loss moves Northwest Nazarene to 7-3-5 overall and 2-2-2 in GNAC play, while Western Washington improves to 7-5-2 overall and 2-3-1 in conference action. The will look forward to hosting Simon Fraser on Saturday for Senior Day.
By the numbers:
- NNU outshot Western Washington 17-12, including an 11-7 advantage in the second half.
- The Nighthawks and Vikings each recorded five corner kicks.
- Brockl finished with four saves, including a penalty-kick stop in the 74th minute.
- Marcelli led NNU with three shots, while El Madkouri also recorded three attempts.
- Putney, Sharif, El Madkouri and Marcelli each put a shot on goal.
- NNU held Western Washington scoreless over the final 67-plus minutes of the match.
