Mid-America Christian University

OKLAHOMA CITY – The MACU Men's Soccer team and the University of the Southwest played 84 minutes of scoreless soccer until Filliph Kamfjord came through with the game-winning goal with only 5:57 remaining to keep the Evangels unblemished in a 1-0 victory at the Dill Soccer Field on Wednesday night.
 
SCORE

• Mid-America Christian 1, Southwest 0
  • Mid-America Christian (5-0-0)
  • Southwest (1-1-1)

SCORING SUMMARY

• 2^nd Half – MACU – 84:03 – Goal: Filliph Kamfjord (3), Assist: Matias Garcia – MACU 1, USW 0

GAME SUMMARY

• First Half
  • While the University of the Southwest got a couple of great early chances from striker Adrian Campbell in the first three minutes, Haruya Higuchi was the first to put a shot on-goal in the 11^th minute. After Julian Huertas launched a deep ball down the midfield, a misplay by the Mustangs gave Higuchi a breakaway chance. However, USW goalkeeper Jeremy Rueda made a sensational diving save to his left to keep MACU off the board.
  • Neither side managed to get another shot on-frame for the next 17 minutes until Matias Garcia in the 38^th minute. The senior left-back made a perfectly executed tackle at midfield and dribbled all the way through the middle of the Mustangs defense into the right side of the box. With a one-on-one with the keeper, Rueda made an outstanding kick save on the attempt pushed to his right, once again holding the game scoreless.
  • Neither team was able to muster another chance on-frame over the final six minutes as the two teams went into the half all tied up.
• Second Half
  • The first 20 minutes of the second half continued to be a defensive slugfest with MACU being the only team in that time frame to put a not-so-dangerous ball on-frame, however, MACU's first great chance came in the 66^th minute. After sent another deep ball down the pitch, a USW defender scuffed his clearance, allowing Klaus Gartner to try and squeeze a long shot off with Rueda playing high off his line. However, the stellar keeper made another outstanding diving save on the retreat, keeping the score locked up at 0-0.
  • It looked as though MACU was going to go up with just over 20 minutes to go when Andres Valencia made a strong play down the right side to keep the ball in and lofting a ball up the middle for Higuchi on the run. While his long-distance chance found the back of the net, he was flagged for offside on the play.
  • After having multiple shots blocked and sent wide, Southwest finally put a shot on-frame in the 74^th minute. Going on the quick counter, Campbell managed to get by his defender down the left side with the Evangels defense forcing a tight angle. Campbell's shot was knocked away by Huertas before being cleared.
  • MACU's best chance in the second half came in the 80^th minute. On the play, Ellis Dunn delivered a sensational deep ball down the right side for Filliph Kamfjord, who centered a great pass in the middle of the box for Higuchi. The senior striker had his initial shot toward the left post saved by Rueda, he had a chance for another follow-up that Rueda instinctively stopped inside the six-yard box for a pair of saves in a matter of seconds.
  • After having so many chances stopped, Mid-America Christian finally found its winning goal in the 85^th minute. Much like a chance in the first half, Garcia gained possession at midfield and dribbled through two defenders to the top of the 18-yard pass. Laying it off for Kamfjord unmarked down the right side, the junior striker slipped his shot past the keeper trying to close off the angle, giving MACU the 1-0 win.

GAME NOTES

• In a contest that saw limited opportunities for both sides, Mid-America Christian held a slim 14-12 advantage in the shooting category while the Evangels more effectively placed eight on-goal to just one for Southwest.
• The goal for Filliph Kamfjord marked his team-leading third of the season while making it his first game-winner of his MACU career.
• After scoring the game-winner in a 1-0 win at McPherson on Saturday, the reigning SAC Defensive Player of the Week once again made himself known on the offensive end as Matias Garcia tallied his first assist of the 2026 campaign.
• It was another night where Julian Huertas was relatively untested by the opposition as he needed to only make one save for his fourth shutout victory of the season in-goal.
• The contest marked the first ever matchup between MACU and University of the Southwest.
• The Evangels are off to their first 5-0 start since the 2021 campaign that saw MACU end the year with a 19-1-1 overall record and was ranked No. 1 in the NAIA for most of the campaign.

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will be back at home on Saturday as it will host Bellevue for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff at the Dill Soccer Field.