On Wednesday, Sept. 15, the Scots took on the Concordia College (Moorehead, Minn.) Cobbers in St. Paul. Macalester won 4-1, with three of their goals coming in the second half of their first conference game of the season. Macalester is part of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and their win-loss record within the conference determines if they make the NCAA playoffs.

This win is not surprising for Macalester. Despite a thrilling overtime win against Viterbo University to begin the season, the Scots have faced difficult competition from two top 25 ranked teams in their first five games of the season. After their Wednesday win their record is 3-3.

Both Luther College and the University of Chicago are ranked in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 for Division III men’s programs. As of Wednesday, Luther was ranked at #20 and the University of Chicago at #15. Macalester fell in hard fought losses to both teams. Their third loss came at the hands of Wartburg College, a team they also lost to in 2019.

Their win against Viterbo was an exciting opener for the men’s team. Cade Fink ’22 recorded four saves during the game, three coming in the second half to push the game into overtime. In the second overtime period, Silas Southworth ’23 scored off an assist from Will Orser ’22 to seal the win.

The Scots second win came on Saturday, Sept. 11 against Colorado College. They trounced the Tigers 6-2, and Fink recorded three saves.

Today’s game saw more heroics from Fink. The senior goalie, who put off graduation to continue his soccer career after COVID-19 cancelled last fall’s season, recorded five saves here during the game.

It took just under three minutes for the Scots to find the back of the net. After a rush from the backfield, Hans Haenicke ’25 sent a bullet into the lower left corner which slipped past Concordia keeper Jensen Waltz ’25. This was Haenicke’s second goal in the Scots’ uniform.

Even with their early dominance, Macalester was outshot in the first half. Fink came up big for four saves, but in the thirtieth minute, Concordia evened the score with a zinger from Nate Weaver ’22 to the upper left of the net.

In the last fifteen minutes of the first half, Macalester and Concordia picked up the pace, slinging the ball back and forth as they attempted to go into the second half with a lead. Neither was able to score, and the half ended in a tie.

Macalester sprang into the second half with two goals in the first five minutes. Thomas Dono ’23 pushed through the defense and shot into the lower right off a pass from Haenicke in the 46th minute. Just a minute later Haenicke scored his second goal of the night dribbling past the defense and slipping the ball around the goal and into the net. Dono assisted on the third Macalester goal of the evening.

The final goal came in the 77th minute. Silas Southworth ’23 brought the ball up the field, into the eighteen and slammed it into the upper right corner.

Macalester slowed down in the last fifteen minutes, while Concordia continued to ramp up their game. Despite a slew of attempts in the last quarter of the game, Concordia could not score again. The Scots’ defense stopped them at every turn.

Concordia came into the match with a 2-3 record as well, setting the teams up for an even match. While Macalester was coming off a huge win against Colorado, Concordia came in after a three-game losing streak. In particular, their 2-1 overtime loss to Nebraska-Wesleyan University on Sept. 12, pushed the Cobbers into their Macalester game with vengeance. They hung with the Scots in the first half, but a roaring start to the second 45 gave Macalester the win.

The win moves Macalester to an even win-loss record in 2021. The Scots also got revenge for their 2-0 loss to Concordia in 2019. The men play again on Saturday, Sept. 18 at Augsburg University at 12:30 p.m.

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