CHICAGO – A rain-soaked day heightened the drama on Sunday as the University of Chicago men's soccer team took on St. Olaf College in a nationally-ranked showdown on the Stagg Field turf. In the end, the Maroons battled through the elements and emerged with a 2-1 triumph.

No. 4-ranked UChicago improved to 5-0 on the season while the No. 15-ranked Oles fell to 2-3.

Torrential rain before the game delayed the start by 25 minutes. The inclement weather was an ever-present factor throughout the contest, with significant stretches of dryness in the first half followed by increased rainfall in the second half. Both teams were forced to adapt to the wet turf, which produced more skipping balls across its surface.

The Maroons struck the opening blow in the eighth minute. Sophomore Lyndon Hu received the ball at midfield, carried it up and laid it off on the left wing to first-year Alex Lee. Once Lee reached the left corner of the box, he booted a left-footed shot past the diving goalie inside the right post.

While UChicago held sway in terms of possession for the opening 20+ minutes, the momentum turned suddenly in the 26th minute. St. Olaf tied the game up with a straight-away shot from 25 yards into the right corner of the net. The Oles found their footing for the remainder of the half after then and were more assertive and successful on their offensive forays. The visitors nearly took the lead in the 32nd minute after smoking a shot off the crossbar.

The home side came out of halftime with purpose and the renewed focus paid dividends 10 minutes in. Hu was once again the man on the spot, as he forced a turnover at midfield, dribbled into space and smacked a bouncing shot from 30 yards that eluded the goalkeeper.

St. Olaf pushed hard for the equalizer in the closing minutes. But a hard foul produced a red card in the 85th minute, putting the Oles down a man for the remainder. UChicago salted it away down the stretch to clinch the critical victory.

Shots were nearly even, with 11 for St. Olaf and 10 for UChicago. St. Olaf had a significant advantage in corner kicks at 9-2.

Junior goalkeeper Will Boyes made one save with one goal allowed to run his record to 5-0.

NEXT GAME:

• Wednesday, Sept. 14 @ 4:00 PM – Hope College at UChicago