Harkin Scores; Purdue Northwest Falls to No. 13 Saginaw Valley, 2-1
HAMMOND, Ind. – Despite a second-half goal by junior Jonny Harkin (Birmingham, England/College of St. Scholastica) in the 71st minute, the Purdue University Northwest men’s soccer team could not complete a rally from a 2-0 deficit and fell 2-1 to No. 13 ranked Saginaw Valley State University (Mich.) in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) action Sunday evening at Pepsi Field at Dowling Park in Hammond, Ind.
With the victory, SVSU improves to 5-1-1 overall and 2-0-1 in conference play, while PNW drops to 3-3-1 on the season and 2-2-0 in the GLIAC.
The Cardinals notched the game’s first goal in the 13th minute when junior Connor Rutz finished off a cross right in front of the net off a pass from junior Kevin Mendoza. SVSU held the 1-0 lead through the end of the first half and 13 minutes of the second half before Rutz found the back of the net again in the 59th minute. Rutz finished off another cross from sophomore Azaad Liadi for the second goal.
Harkin cut the deficit in half with a beautiful header goal set up by a perfectly placed corner kick by freshman Enrique Serna (Majadahonda, Spain/Colegio San Jaime). The Pride had their chances in the final 20 minutes of regulation, including a header by sophomore Grant Ugarte (Oak Lawn, Ill./Oak Lawn) that was stopped by the Cardinals keeper right at the goal line with just over eight minutes remaining.
Senior Miguel David (San Diego,Calif./Bonita Vista) recorded five saves for PNW.
Purdue Northwest returns to action on Friday, September 29, with a road game against GLIAC foe Northwood University (Mich.). The game is scheduled for a 1:30 p.m. ET start at Dean Field in Midland, Mich.