DECORAH, IOWA – The Norse responded with two back-to-back goals late in the second half to tie Simpson 2-2.
A CRITICAL POINT
This probably won't be the last time these two teams meet on the field this season. The two evenly matched teams both have strong defenses that neither could break in the first 45 minutes of action. So, it was down to the last 45 and who wanted it more. A lot was on the line for the conference standings with both teams seeking a win.
As the game went on it got chippy. Simpson would get a free kick just outside the Luther box. The Storm sent it in towards the back post as Ellie Baraka put it away for the 1-0 lead. Then in the 62
nd the Norse got a red card and were down to 10-men on the field. Then three minutes later a poor defensive communication on Luther lead to the ball just rolling in for an own goal. The Norse now found themselves down by two goals with 23 minutes left in the game. Luther would get one back in the 76
th minute. Raul Fernandez (Crevillent, Spain) fought to keep the ball in near the endline. He passed it to
Ricardo Crisanto (St. Paul, Minn./Highland Park) then over to
Javier Pastor Valls (Mutxamel, Spain/The Kiski School (PA) who found
Felipe Alvarez Casaro (Liboa, Portugal/Instituto Espanol Lisboa) for a bending ball goal with his left foot. That goal gave the Norse life and the will to fight for the draw. Two minutes later
Luis Figueroa (San Juan, Puerto Rico/High Mowing School) slipped it through from the top of the box to
Faydane Ouro-Akondo (Minneapolis, Minn./Southwest) who took one touch sending the ball into the opposite corner. The Norse responded well to get the 2-2 tie for a critical point in conference standings.
TOP NORSE
- Senior Felipe Alvarez Casaro (Liboa, Portugal/Instituto Espanol Lisboa) scored his first goal of the season that was critical for the Norse in the game.
- Fifth Year Faydane Ouro-Akondo (Minneapolis, Minn./Southwest) scored his third goal of the season.
- Goalkeepers Sophomore Jack Bell (Madison, Wis./Madison Memorial) had five saves while Junior Kai Haroldson (Excelsior, Minn./Minnetonka) came up with two saves that prevented the Storm from adding more to their total.
UP NEXT
Luther heads to Gustavus Adolphus College on Monday October 17
th for a 3:00 p.m. CT late afternoon game.
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