RIDGELAND – An early goal from sophomore Joseph Hayes proved to be the difference-maker in a 1-0 road win for Northwest at Holmes on Friday afternoon.

Northwest garnered its first win of the season to improve to 1-3 overall and 1-1 in the MACJC North Division, while Holmes dropped to 1-3-1 and 0-2 in division play.

Hayes, the Rangers' leading scorer from last season, put Northwest on the board in the fifth minute thanks to a feed from Dodger Rhone for the Rangers' first score of the season. 

Both teams went back and forth for the remainder of the match but defense was the story the rest of the way, as neither team was able to tack on additional goals.

Northwest returns home on Tuesday, Sept. 12 against Itawamba at 3 p.m. Live stats will be available for that contest through nwccrangers.com.