The Purdue Northwest men's soccer team opened GLIAC play in winning fashion Thursday afternoon, earning a 2-1 road victory over St. Cloud State at Husky Stadium.
The basics
- Records: Purdue Northwest (4-0-1, 1-0-0), St. Cloud State (2-4-0, 0-1-0)
- Location: Husky Stadium – St. Cloud, Minn.
- Attendance: 25
Inside the numbers
- Junior Gianluca Franco (Orlando, Fla./Montverde Academy) scored his first goal of the season just over three minutes into the contest, with sophomore Landon Potts (Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf) providing the assist.
- Potts added his third goal of the season in the 13th minute, with Aloe Berassa (Miranda de Ebro, Spain) earning the assist.
- Purdue Northwest finished with nine shots, including five on goal.
- St. Cloud State recorded 12 shots and placed four attempts on target.
- The Lions held a 7-1 advantage in corner kicks.
- Junior Xavier Fernandez (Guatemala City, Guatemala/Colegio Interamericano de Guatemala) played all 90 minutes in goal for PNW in his first career start, making three saves to help grab the win.
- St. Cloud State goalkeeper Erik Willke also recorded three saves.
- Potts led the Lions with three shots, including two on goal, while Franco recorded three shots and placed all three on target.
- Purdue Northwest was called for seven fouls, while St. Cloud State committed five.
- The match featured three cautions, with two issued to St. Cloud State and one to the Lions.
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The breakdown
- Purdue Northwest wasted little time finding the back of the net, as Franco scored at the 3:18 mark off an assist from Potts to give the Lions an early 1-0 advantage.
- PNW doubled its lead in the 13th minute when Potts finished off an assist from Berassa, putting the Lions ahead 2-0.
- The Lions carried their two-goal advantage into halftime after keeping St. Cloud State off the scoreboard throughout the opening 45 minutes.
- St. Cloud State responded early in the second half, with King Dwumah Acheampong scoring in the 59th minute off an assist from Gavin Gaetz to cut the PNW lead to 2-1.
- Fernandez and the Lions' defense held firm over the final 30 minutes, limiting St. Cloud State to one additional shot on goal.
- PNW continued to create opportunities in the second half and finished the match with six corner kicks after halftime.
- Fernandez made three saves in the contest, helping the Lions withstand the Huskies' second-half pressure.
- Purdue Northwest held on for the 2-1 victory to begin GLIAC play with a road win.
- With the victory, PNW remains unbeaten through five matches and improves to 4-0-1 overall and 1-0-0 in GLIAC play.
Up next
- Purdue Northwest returns to action when the Lions continue GLIAC play on the road when they take on Roosevelt on Sunday, September 20. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. CT in Chicago, Illinois.
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