SUPERIOR, Wis. – When the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) preseason men's soccer poll was released in August, the University of Wisconsin-Superior was tabbed as the overwhelming favorite to win the crown for a sixth consecutive year. Be that as it may, the University of Northwestern men's soccer team gave the Yellowjackets all they could handle on Tuesday night in Superior.
UW-Superior broke a scoreless tie with a goal in the 22
nd minute, but Northwestern answered with lightning speed, as sophomore forward
Teddy Hall (Mendota Heights, Minn./Homeschool) punched in the equalizer just two minutes later. Despite UWS holding a sizable shots and shots on goal advantage through the first 45, UNW was more efficient with its opportunities and the teams went into halftime all square at one.
Unfortunately for the Eagles, UW-Superior was able to slip a second goal by UNW goalkeeper
Kyle Dipzinski (Ionia, Mich./Ionia) in the 56
th minute. Northwestern nearly tied things up again just before time expired in the match, as
Gonzalo Luna Belmonte (Riverbank, Calif./Riverbank) just barely missed left of the net from inside the box. The 2-1 score would hold for the remainder of the contest.
While the stat sheet may say he allowed two goals, Dipzinski stood up admirably against an onslaught of Yellowjacket shots, making 10 saves. Seven of those came in the action-packed first half. UWS wound up taking 27 shots and 12 shots on goal against the freshman in net. Dipzinski's 10 saves were a career-high.
Northwestern will continue their road trip on Saturday as they take on North Central in Minneapolis. Kickoff is set for 2:00 PM.
