Dutch men draw in road soccer match
Central Dutch Athletics
PELLA — Neither team could score a goal in 110 minutes as the No. 12 Central College men’s soccer team tied 0-0 at Nebraska Wesleyan University Wednesday night.
Central is now 10-1-2 (2-0-1 American Rivers Conference) while Nebraska Wesleyan is now 6-3-3 (0-1-1 conference).
“Anytime you can get a point on the road in this conference, it’s never the worst thing,” coach Garry Laidlaw said. “We knew this would be a difficult match tonight. The conditions were difficult because the slickness of the surface created a pit of a pinball game.”
Statistically, the two teams were nearly even across the board. Central had a slight 15-13 advantage on shot attempts. Both teams put five shots on frame in the contest. In the second half Central had eight shots and eight corner kicks.
“In the first half, they played a bit harder than us and we struggled to get up to speed,” Laidlaw said. “In the second half, I thought we carried the majority of the play.”
Freshman midfielder Nick Ashton (Ankeny, Centennial HS) led the team with three shots and two shots on goal. Defender Joel Collett (junior, Walford, Cedar Rapids Prairie HS), midfielder Zach Worster (sophomore, Saint Peters, Mo., Saint Dominic HS) and midfielder Tony Cervelli (midfielder, Plainfield, Ill., South HS) also had shots on goal.
“We had a couple of good looks,” Laidlaw said. “We just didn’t tuck them away tonight.”
Andrew Mathys (senior, goalkeeper, Elburn, Ill., Kaneland HS) held the Prairie Wolves scoreless with five saves of his own, including one in the second overtime.
“His hands are great right now,” Laidlaw said. “He’s smothering everything and making good decisions. There were a couple of moments where we needed him to make a big save and he did it.”
Central will host the University of Dubuque on Saturday in Pella. That match is currently scheduled to take place at 2:30 p.m. on Central’s campus at the A.N. Kuyper Athletics Complex.
