SENATOBIA - Though Northwest came away on the wrong end of the scoreboard in Saturday's 3-1 loss to No. 12 Mineral Area College, the positives were not hard to find for the Rangers.
Northwest went toe-to-toe with a strong nationally-ranked program, remaining tied 1-1 with the Cardinals throughout most of the first half. Even when the match became increasingly physical between both teams, the Rangers continued to remain within striking distance until the final whistle.
George Neill scored the first goal for the Cardinals less than three minutes in, only to have
Rodrigo Bandeira quickly respond in the sixth minute. From there, both teams battled back and forth to break the tie, with Mineral Area finally doing so in the 40th minute, as Orran Mushet assisted Elliot Whalley's goal.
Although the Rangers had some good looks, Northwest was ultimately unable to find the equalizer. Neill's second goal in the 62nd minute put Mineral Area ahead 3-1, and the Cardinals kept the home team at bay the rest of the way.
Mineral Area finished with 18 shot attempts, including 11 on-goal. Meanwhile, the Rangers were limited to seven shots and four on-goal.
Fouls became one of the biggest factors of the evening, as both teams combined for 36 infractions. A total of nine cautions were issued, resulting in one ejection of Bandeira in the 52nd minute. Five Rangers were whistled for cautions, while Mineral Area had four of its players called for yellow cards.
Mineral Area also had 15 corner kick opportunities, while Northwest was limited to just four.
Delta State transfer goalkeeper
Jacob Little collected eight saves for the Rangers, playing the full 90 minutes. Pedro Jarvie finished with three saves for the Cardinals.
With the loss, Northwest starts the 2024 season with an 0-1 mark, while Mineral Area evened its record to 1-1. The Rangers will host Tougaloo in an exhibition match on Monday, August 26 at 7 P.M., before stepping back into regular season competition against Copiah-Lincoln on Thursday, Aug. 29 in Ridgeland.
Neither match will have live broadcast coverage due to overlapping athletic events, but Thursday's match kicks off at 1 P.M.
