Men’s soccer falls to St. Olaf in close battle

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The St. Thomas men’s soccer team outshot St. Olaf 14-9 but couldn’t find the net Saturday as they fell 1-0 at South Field.

Men’s soccer has only seen the field once before today’s matchup when they defeated St. Mary’s 3-0 in early April. Coach Jon Lowery noticed the struggle of not having a lot of competition.

“We were under stress and we haven’t been for a long time,” Lowery said. “It was great to see our competitive personalities be tested.”

Lowery said he was happy for the team’s progress and thankful for the meaningful 90 minutes out on the field.

“I could see they wanted it and they worked hard, just came up short,” Lowery said. “We can now evaluate it and see what we have to do.”

The Tommies dominated the second half with seven more shots taken.

First-year defense Caden McLagan took two shots, one on goal, helping the Tommies keep the ball in St. Olaf’s zone.

“We did well to keep pushing but we just couldn’t find the end result,” McLagan said. “It’s a difficult season for sure and we need to adjust to it but don’t have a lot of time to do that.”

Sophomore defense Issac Eckroth saw this game as preparation for a tough schedule next fall in Division I.

“It’s going to be a lot harder than what we’re experiencing now, so we just have to get ready and come together to put in the work so we are successful,” Eckroth said.

The Tommies stay at home for their next game against Bethel University on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

Olivia Paradise can be reached at para4336@stthomas.edu.