No. 16 Men's Soccer Drops Road Game at Central Methodist

Fayette, Mo., (Oct. 11, 2023)- The Missouri Valley College men's and women's soccer teams traveled to Fayette, Mo., for a Wednesday evening Heart of America Athletic Conference doubleheader against Central Methodist (Mo.).  The No. 16 men's team fell with second half goals, by a 3-0 score.

The men's game started with the two teams trading possession early in the contest.  The first shot on goal came with nearly 16 minutes played, as the Central Methodist attempt required a save from Sophomore Goalkeeper Vicente Benitez Delgado (Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain).  Two minutes later, Missouri Valley came close to taking the lead, as a shot from Junior Midfielder Malik Hasanovikj (Skopje, North Macedonia) hit off the crossbar.  With just over 20 minutes off the clock, Hasanaovikj had another shot towards the CMU goal, but the chance was saved by an Eagle defender.  Both teams struggled to create opportunities in the late stages of the first half, and the score stayed at 0-0 going into the break.

Action in the second half started quickly after the restart, as the Eagles went on top, 1-0, on a goal scored with less than one minute played.  Missouri Valley worked back with the better of possession following the goal, and created a shot on goal from Junior Defender Strahinja Djurdic (Brcko, Bosnia & Herzegovina) that was saved four minutes later.  Central Methodist increased its advantage with two more goals over the opening 15 minutes of play in the half to make it a 3-0 score.  The Vikings were limited on quality chances through the rest of the half, and could not produce another shot on goal.  Missouri Valley fell by a final score of 3-0.

Benitez Delgado made one save in goal.  Missouri Valley created eight shots and six corner kicks in the game.

Missouri Valley drops to 7-4 on the season and 6-1 in the conference .  Central Methodist improves to 6-6-2 overall and 3-3-1 in the Heart.

Up next, the teams will host William Penn (Iowa) for Homecoming, Saturday evening inside Volney C. Ashford Stadium.  Women's game starts at 6 p.m., and the men's game against the No. 14 Statesmen is 8:30 p.m.

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.