No. 17 Men's Soccer Tops Midland at Home

Marshall, Mo., (Sept. 9, 2023)- The No. 17 Missouri Valley College men's soccer team hosted Midland (Neb.) in a non-conference game Saturday evening inside Volney C. Ashford Stadium.  The Vikings scored two early goals and held off Midland for a 2-1 victory.

The game started with Missouri Valley building up early pressure.  Midland turned possession over to the Vikings deep in the defensive third, as Junior Midfielder Malik Hasanovikj (Skopje, North Macedonia) came up with the ball, and sent a cross to the center of goal.  The pass found Sophomore Midfielder Julius Kruger (Berlin, Germany), who put his shot from 12-yards out past the keeper and into goal to give MVC a 1-0 lead with just over seven minutes played.  Midland answered back just over one minute later, creating a chance off a corner kick.  Sophomore Goalkeeper Vicente Benitez Delgado (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain) deflected a cross away, but Midland retained possession, and worked a close-range shot into goal to tie the teams at 1-1.  The Vikings responded quickly after the equalizing goal, and worked another chance.  Junior Forward Arthur Lima Fraga (Salvador, Brazil) sent a pass to Junior Forward Luka Perendija (Obrenovac, Serbia), who then set up Kruger with a breakaway on goal.  As the Midland keeper tried to narrow the angle, Kruger sent his shot off the post and into goal to put the Vikings back in front, 2-1, with just over 11 minutes played in the game.  The advantage nearly increased two minutes later, as a header from Perendija was saved.  Perendija had another attempt saved, this time near the 20-minute mark.  Junior Forward Sam Green (Bromley, England) and Hasanovikj each had one shot saved later in the half.  Missouri Valley held Midland to without another quality chance, and went into the break in front, 2-1.

The second half started with an early opportunity for Midland, but Benitez Delgado made a save with five minutes played after the restart.  Freshman Midfielder Omer Sagiv (Tel-Aviv, Israel) came through a shot near the 56-minute mark, but his attempt hit off the crossbar.  Three minutes later, Green forced the Midland keeper into a save.  Benitez Delgado needed to make another save, on a Midland shot midway through the half.  That was the final chance on goal for Midland in the game, and the Vikings put away a 2-1 victory.

Kruger scored both goals for Missouri Valley, as Hasanovikj, Perendija and Lima Fraga each recorded their first assists of the season.  Benitez Delgado came up with two saves.  Missouri Valley held a 17-6 advantage in shots and a 7-1 edge in corner kicks.

The win moves Missouri Valley to 1-3, while Midland drops to 2-3.

Up next, the Viking men's soccer team will open play in the Heart of America Athletic Conference with a game at Park (Mo.), Sept. 16, at 2:30 p.m.

Box Score-Click Here

About Missouri Valley College

Known for its dynamic, richly diverse, and friendly educational environment, Missouri Valley College offers many opportunities to grow in mind, body, and spirit. Grounded in the liberal arts, undergraduate studies empower students to master interdisciplinary skills needed to succeed in a knowledge-based global society. MVC offers over 30 academic programs, study abroad program, extracurricular activities, and a wide variety of sports. The most popular majors include education and business, criminal justice and exercise science. Above all, Valley is committed to student success. For more information, call (660) 831-4000 or visit www.moval.edu.