CLAREMORE, Okla. – No. 21 Rogers State men's soccer (8-4-2, 5-3 GAC/MIAA) suffered a 1-0 loss to archrival Northeastern State (6-3-3, 4-2-1 GAC/MIAA) as the RiverHawks scored the lone goal in the second half in what was a physical, defensive battle.
 
Declan Viljoen (7-4) made one save for the Hillcats while allowing the goal. This is only the second time this season Hillcats have been shutout, with the other coming in the 1-0 decision to No. 17 Southern Nazarene. 
 
In the first half, RSU actually outshot the RiverHawks 4-2. The Hillcats created chances with those shots, as they tallied three corner kicks to NSU's one in the first half. Sebastian Hernandez nearly scored a goal in the 13th minute, but NSU was in perfect position to stop the ball. Ruben Carrasco fired in two near misses late in the first half but was unable to score, sending the two sides into the break knotted in a scoreless tie.
 
The second half is when things really began to heat up. NSU scored the only goal of the game in the 53rd minute on a header off a cross into the box for the 1-0 lead. The Hillcats played aggressive on offense, as they took eight shots, with three of those shots on goal in the period. NSU only took three shots but made the made the most of their chances. In the 64th minute, the first yellow card came out, but it would not be the last. Things continued to shift as there were five more yellow cards given out as well as a straight red card all to the RiverHawks in the final eight minutes of the match.
 
The Hillcats will be back in action on Thursday, Oct. 26 as they travel to Searcy, Ark. to face off against Harding. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m.