SENATOBIA - For the second time in three days, Northwest nearly completed a second half rally against the competition. However, the comeback once again fell just short on Tuesday, as the Rangers dropped a 3-2 decision to National Park College.
Sophomore
Gunner Pitt got Northwest on the board early, scoring off an assist by
Gabriel Burton in the seventh minute of the match. However, the Rangers' lead was taken away less than 10 minutes later, as a foul in the box set up a successful penalty kick from Paula Ndenzako, allowing National Park College to tie the match.
For the next 16 minutes, the score remained knotted at 1-1 until Tim Heck connected with Abdi Zakariya in the 32nd minute. The score allowed the Nighthawks to take a 2-1 advantage at halftime.
Less than three minutes into the second half, National Park College stretched its lead to 3-1, thanks to an unassisted goal from Henry Gomez. The Nighthawks controlled the offense for the next several minutes, until
Ethan Barnes found an open lane to
Miller Thorsen, who took it in for a Northwest goal in the 72nd minute.
With Northwest back within a goal, the Rangers turned up the heat on the offensive side of the ball and created a couple opportunities for tying the match. However, despite a couple close calls, the equalizer never came for Northwest, as the Nighthawks escaped with the narrow win.
Will Thompson had another solid day between the posts, capturing 11 saves. Luke Berry played the full 90 minutes for National Park College, totaling five saves.
Northwest was outmatched 17-10 in total shots, with 14 of the Nighthawks' shots coming on-goal. Both teams combined for 28 fouls, with Zakariya and Ndenzako issued cautions for National Park College.
With the loss, Northwest fell to 0-3 overall, while the Nighthawks improved to 5-0-2 on the season. The Rangers now turn their attention to Friday, September 15 for the MACCC opener at Meridian, scheduled for 7 P.M.
In the all-time series between the two teams, Meridian leads the series 8-7-1. In their last meeting, the Rangers took a 4-2 victory from the Eagles on October 18, 2022.
Friday's match will be carried on
mcceagles.live, with tickets available for purchase on
mcceagles.com/tickets.
