NORTHFIELD, MN – For the second time in five days, the Carleton College men's soccer team bested a top-20 team by a 1-0 tally. This time, Ben Pennell's 53rd-minute goal gave the Knights a home victory over No. 20 North Central (Ill.) College. Both teams entered the match with unblemished 6-0-0 ledgers.
 
The Knights' seven-match win streak is the longest season-opening run of success in program history. Carleton is also 4-1-1 in six matches against top-25 teams since the start of the 2021 campaign.
 
The opening scoring chance of the contest came in the fourth minute as a corner kick found Justin Crawmer, who directed a firm header towards the bottom corner of the goal. Cardinals' keeper Riley Johnson clawed the ball away from the line to keep the game scoreless. North Central followed that up with two attempts of its own, with forward Matteo Innocenti rolling a volley attempt into the arms of Daniel Linder. In the meantime, the first of the game's five yellow cards was shown to the Cardinals' Jacobo de Collibus, a symptom of a hotly contested, physical game that saw both sides whistled for 10 fouls.
 
The first half came to a scoreless conclusion, with the two sides inseparable after end-to-end play that never quite resulted in a goal. However, Carleton nearly broke that deadlock within the opening minute of the second half, with a nicely worked move culminating in a free Jonathan Vonderlage header. Johnson was again equal to the task, batting away the point-blank effort.
 
The difference maker finally came in the 53rd minute. The Knights capped a spell of possession with Briggs Priem flicking a backheel towards Justin Crawmer. Crawmer slid the ball across the top of the box to a wide-open Pennell, who took three touches and curled a shot into the top left corner for his third goal of the season, a career high.
 
North Central continued its quest for an equalizer, and in the 85th minute, an excellent opportunity arose for the Cardinals. Innocenti scooped a ball perfectly into the path of overlapping left-back Edoardo Bonifacio, who directed the ball goalward. Linder read the play well, rushed out, and stuck a foot in the path of the close-range shot. The ball fell kindly for North Central once again, and substitute Arthur Glinkin fired the ball towards the open net. However, first-year center-back Josh Zebrack—playing in place of injured all-conference peformer Riaz Kelly—hustled to cover the line after the initial shot and was able to make a crucial goal-line clearance to keep Carleton's lead intact.
 
North Central was unable to rustle up any further dangerous chances despite five second-half corner kicks.
 
The Cardinals averaged 3.67 goals per game this season, but the Knights' backline was up to the task, earning its sixth consecutive clean sheet and extending the team's shutout streak to 590 minutes. This was the first time North Central had been shutout since Sept. 25, 2021, a span of 39 matches.
 
Up Next for the Knights
Carleton stays home for another non-conference matchup as the Knights host Simpson College at 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 20.