ST. CLOUD, Minn. – The Saginaw Valley State University men's soccer team earned a 3-1 road victory over St. Cloud State on Friday afternoon at Husky Stadium.
The Cardinals (6-1-4, 4-1-2 GLIAC) received two goals from Matty Telfer (Newcastle, England, Sunderland College) before Amadou Kouyate (Ann Arbor, Mich., Community HS) sealed the victory with a late goal. SVSU outshot the Huskies 16-8 while putting nine attempts on goal.
Saginaw Valley opened the scoring in the 25th minute after earning a penalty kick. Telfer stepped to the spot and converted at 24:48 to give the Cardinals a 1-0 advantage that held through halftime.
The Cardinals continued to create opportunities after the break and doubled their advantage in the 61st minute. Sora Kozaki (Saitama, Japan, Yaita Chuoh) had an initial attempt saved before Telfer found the back of the net two seconds later off Kozaki's assist to make it 2-0.
St. Cloud State ended SVSU's lengthy scoreless streak in the 67th minute, cutting the lead to 2-1. The goal was the first conceded by the Cardinals in 428 minutes and 46 seconds following four consecutive clean sheets.
The Huskies looked for an equalizer, but Nick Kay (Walled Lake, Mich., Walled Lake Central HS) made a save in the 79th minute to preserve the one-goal advantage.
Saginaw Valley put the match away in the 86th minute. Witse Moulaert (Brussels, Belgium) forced a save at 84:30 before Kouyate scored just over a minute later off an assist from Geoff Ojango (Nairobi, Kenya, Loughborough College), extending the Cardinal lead to 3-1.
Telfer led the SVSU attack with his two-goal performance, while Kouyate added the insurance goal. Kozaki and Ojango each recorded an assist. The Cardinals held a 9-4 advantage in shots on goal.
Kay made three saves in the victory, with all three coming in the second half. The Cardinal defense limited St. Cloud State to just eight total shots and four on target.
Up Next: Saginaw Valley men's soccer heads to Roosevelt on Sunday, October 11. The Cardinals and Lakers are set for a 1 PM start at Morris Field in Arlington Heights, Illinois.
