SENATOBIA - For at least one half, the Northwest men's soccer program went toe-to-toe with one of the top-ranked programs in the country on Monday afternoon.

Unfortunately for the Rangers, eighth-ranked St. Charles found its groove in the second half and used a slew of goals to pull away and hand Northwest a 5-0 loss.

A penalty kick goal from Cleofas Gomes just two minutes into the second half helped spark the Cougars' offense, as St. Charles followed with two more goals over the next 10 minutes to turn the scoreless draw into a quick 3-0 deficit.

St. Charles made matters worse with another goal in the 64th minute and the Cougars added one more for good measure in the final 10 minutes of regulation.

Despite posting a stout defensive effort throughout the match, the Rangers were held to just two shots on the day while the Cougars eventually fired off 26 attempts. Freshman goalkeeper Xzavier Paylor collected nine saves in the losing effort.

Both teams finished with an even 11 fouls apiece, with Gomes and Blaine Galbraith incurring yellow cards for their respective clubs.

Now sitting at 0-4 on the season, Northwest will turn its attention to the MACCC North Division opener at East Central later this week. The Warriors and Rangers will tangle at 7 P.M. from Bailey Stadium in Decatur on Friday, September 10.