FORT WAYNE, Ind. – Junior forward
Kobie Qualah fired a career-high five shots to tie a season-high for the Norse on Wednesday, but the Northern Kentucky men's soccer team struggled to find the back of the net, falling to Fort Wayne, 2-0, at the Hefner Soccer Complex.
With the result, NKU dips to 0-5-1 on the season while Fort Wayne improves to 4-3-0.
Between the Posts
- Freshman Jared Leyland earned his second career start in goal and picked up five saves to tie NKU's season-high set by Christian Carey against Loyola on Sept. 2.
- Leyland split his saves with three in the opening half and two in the second stanza.
- Fort Wayne goalkeeper Jorge Trujillo totaled seven saves to earn the shutout.
First Half Summary
- Qualah kick-started the Norse offense in the 17th minute of play, firing a pair of back-to-back shots on goal in the 17th and 19th minutes.
- Qualah's shots were followed by a pair of NKU corner kicks, leading to a shot on goal on a header from Tucker Monheimer in the 21st minute.
- NKU could not break through Trujillo and the Fort Wayne defense, but the Norse were efficient early, as three of the their first four shot attempts were on target.
- The Norse defense held Fort Wayne to one shot between the 17 and 40 minute marks to keep the Mastodons scoreless in the first half.
Second Half Summary
- Both teams were aggressive to start the second half. NKU fired four shots within the first 15 minutes to double their shot total.
- However, the 'Dons capitalized on the first shot attempt of the second stanza to claim a 1-0 edge. Oscar Uyamadu fired a shot from just three yards out for Fort Wayne's first goal in the 46th minute.
- Uyamadu struck again in the 64th minute, taking a cross from the right side and firing a goal from the top of the box to deposit Fort Wayne's insurance goal.
- After totaling four shots in the first half, NKU managed seven in the second stanza, four of which were on goal.
Norse Notes
- Despite being out-shot, 15-11, NKU posted a 7-5 advantage in shots on goal.
- Across the last three games, Qualah has fired eight total shots, six of which have been on goal for a .750 shot on goal percentage.
- Leyland, a freshman, had four saves on the season after 210:00 minutes of play entering Wednesday's match and more than doubled his save total with five against the Mastodons.
- Monheimer, a freshman midfielder, recorded a pair of shots, both on goal, to increase his team-leading shot total to nine on the season.
Up Next
- The Norse return home for the first time in over two weeks when they host Milwaukee for the Horizon League home opener on Saturday, Sept. 17. The 7 p.m. kickoff will be broadcast live on ESPN3.