The National Park College (NPC) Nighthawk men’s and women’s soccer teams split their Sophomore Day matches against Crowder College at Hot Springs World Class High School Wednesday, with the Nighthawk women dropping a 2-0 decision and the Nighthawk men picking up a 2-0 victory.
Before the women’s match, National Park College honored seven sophomores—Ainsley Louton (Hot Springs), Yanisel Martinez (Dallas, Texas), Ally Zarate (Hot Springs), Cynthia Lopez (Carthage, Texas), Alondra Limon (Alvin, Texas), Natalie Brice (Benton, Louisiana) and Amoy Gayle (Hot Springs)—for their outstanding contributions to Nighthawk Athletics.
In the opener, the Nighthawk women (1-7) utilized a strong defensive presence to keep the Roughriders at bay early. After Crowder College took the lead, 1-0, with 32 minutes to play in the half, the Nighthawks went back to work on defense, halting numerous shots on goal to keep the deficit at one goal entering halftime. In the second half, the Nighthawks increased their offensive presence, utilizing fast breaks down field with Zarate and freshman striker Madison Hernandez (Brownsboro, Texas), but were unable to light up the scoreboard. Following a second Roughriders goal midway through the period, Crowder College’s defense proved to be too much for the Nighthawks to overcome in the end.
Freshman goalkeeper Lily Paslay (Brookland) recorded seven saves for the Nighthawks in the loss.
Before the men’s match, NPC recognized its 15 sophomores—Patrick Irving (Liverpool, England), Tim Heck (Frankfurt, Germany), Ali Muganga (Nashville, Tennessee), Edwin Arredondo (North Little Rock), Jack Avery (Brighton, England), Irvin Martinez (Katy, Texas), Sebastian Ramirez (Dickinson, Texas), Adan Oviedo (Memphis, Tennessee), Kevin Quevedo (Katy, Texas), Pedro Vilela (Lima, Peru), Tyson Adams (Morgan, Utah), Marius Christensen (Støvring, Denmark), Gregory Garcia (Dallas, Texas), Leo Santillan (Hot Springs) and Andy Duran (Westbury, New York)—for their accomplishments and contributions to Nighthawk Nation.
In men’s action, a defensive battle resulted in a scoreless match at halftime. In the second half, NPC (3-6-1) wasted no time finding its offense, erupting out of the gate with two quick goals. Less than two minutes into the half, Avery punched in the go-ahead goal to become the Nighthawks’ all-time leading scorer, passing former Nighthawks Felix Rocca and Paulo Ndenzako. Minutes later, freshman winger Augustin Herion (Liège, Belgium) padded the lead, bouncing in a goal off the right goalpost on a shot assisted by freshman winger Yadiel Cardona (Houston, Texas). Fueled by stifling defense, NPC rode its momentum to victory.
Freshman goalkeeper Tim Grahmann (Rudesheim am Rhein, Germany) recorded four saves for the Nighthawks in the win.
The Nighthawk men play host to Hill College Sunday, October 20 at 2 p.m. The match will be streamed live by the Nighthawk Network. The Nighthawk men and women travel to Crowder College Tuesday, October 22 with a 2 p.m. kickoff for the women, followed by men’s action at 4 p.m.
For more information on schedules, rosters and more, visit Nighthawk Athletics online. Fans can also follow the Nighthawks all season on social media.
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