OKLAHOMA CITY – After battling to a scoreless draw through the first half, No. 12 MACU Men's Soccer put together an inspiring offensive show in the second half as MACU scored three second half goals to come away with a 3-0 victory over John Brown at the Dill Soccer Field on Tuesday night.
 
SCORING SUMMARY

• 2^nd Half – MACU – 52:09 – Goal: Enzo Nogue (7) – MACU 1, JBU 0
• 2^nd Half – MACU – 57:41 – Goal: Nicolas Cervantes (1) – MACU 2, JBU 0
• 2^nd Half – MACU – 60:46 – Goal: Federico Palacios (5), Assists: Josh Macklin, Tony Ngombi – MACU 3, JBU 0

MATCH SUMMARY

• First Half
  • Both teams struggled to find on-target shots in the opening half as Mid-America Christian (8-1-3, 3-0-1 SAC) only had one on-target try off the foot of Francois Geris-Rey in the sixth-minute, which was a weakly hit 16-yard right side floater toward the top left corner that was easily snared by Kyle Hix.
  • John Brown (6-1-4, 3-1 SAC) only had one on-frame attempt came in the 37^th minute when Erick Diaz was awarded a free kick just outside the left side of the 18-yard box following a MACU foul. However, his on-frame line drive went straight into the mitts of Claudio Fuentealba for the easy save.
• Second Half
  • At the top of the 53^rd minute, Mid-America Christian found the back of the net when Pietro Musso's shot in the box was initially blocked by a JBU defender and bounced just outside the 18-yard box. After the Golden Eagles won the 50-50 ball initially, a heavy touch allowed Enzo Nogue to track down the loose ball in the midfield, take a dribble to the left before rifling a 30-yard sensational strike into the top left corner to give MACU the 1-0 lead.
  • Five minutes later, MACU added to it after Nicolas Cervantes cut through two defenders going into the left side of the 18-yard box and was tripped up by the Golden Eagles defender, setting up the Evangels with a penalty kick. Cervantes elected to take the freebie as the sophomore forward got JBU keeper Kyle Hix to dive left before placing a strike inside the right post to make it 2-0.
  • Just three minutes later, the Evangels stretched their lead out to three. With the Golden Eagles trying to clear it out of their defensive third, Tony Ngombi stuck a leg out to stop the clearance on the right side before delivering a pass to Josh Mackin near the top middle of the 18-yard box. Quickly relaying it to Federico Palacios, the sophomore forward induced Kyle Hix to come off his line to the point of attack before making a quick cut back and firing into the wide-open net from eight yards out to cap the scoring at 3-0.
  • The Golden Eagles were never really able to muster much of a threat against MACU the rest of the way as the Evangels secured the victory.

MATCH NOTES

• While Mid-America Christian held a commanding 14-7 shot advantage for the match, both teams struggled to put shots on-frame as MACU mustered only four shots on-goal to just two for JBU. However, the Evangels were opportunistic in their limited chances, scoring on 75-percent of their on-target shots while the Golden Eagles came up empty.
• Enzo Nogue continued to add to his team-lead in the goal scoring department with his seventh goal of the season, extending his season point total to 17.
• Federico Palacios continued his personal goal-scoring streak as he has now netted a goal in five consecutive matches that he has played in.
• The goal for Nicolas Cervantes was the first of his Evangels career.
• With his assist on Palacios' final score of the contest, Tony Ngombi moved into the team-lead in assists with his fourth of the year while Josh Macklin was credited with his first dime of the season.
• Senior goalkeeper Claudio Fuentealba notched his 11^th career shutout to move into a tie for third with MACU Team of the Decade member Tyler McIntosh for the most clean sheets for a MACU goalkeeper in the NAIA Era (2007-present). It also went down as his 22^nd career win.
• By getting the win, MACU has now won nine consecutive meetings against the Golden Eagles. The Evangels are also just the second team to shutout JBU this season after the Golden Eagles battled Williams Baptist to a 0-0 draw in Siloam Springs, Arkansas on Sept. 14.
• The victory along with Oklahoma City playing Wayland Baptist to a 1-1 draw at Brian Harvey Field on Tuesday night allowed the Evangels to move into a tie with the Stars at the top of the SAC table with both teams sitting at 10 points.

HEAD COACH AARON HOXIE'S ANALYSIS

• "Very happy for the boys tonight, they went out and earned the victory.  They executed the game plan to near perfection.  Got a little sloppy in the first half, fortunately it did not bite us.  The second half was fun to watch because we finally had some clinicality when it mattered the most. The game was done and dusted in eight minutes."
• "Their desire is growing each and every day, as they begin to learn what this is all about.  We need to be proud of the subs because they all came in and did their jobs. They helped change the game for us in a big way. Thankful of their unselfish attitudes."
• "We are looking forward to some rest. Big game coming up next Tuesday against OCU...winner goes to solo top of the table.  We will need to be ready because those boys can play." 

UP NEXT

• First place in the Sooner Athletic Conference will be on the line next Tuesday night at the Dill Soccer Field as the Evangels will battle Oklahoma City. Kickoff is slated for a 7:30 p.m. start.