ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – The Bethel University Men's soccer team captured their third consecutive victory on Wednesday night against the North Central University Rams, scoring a season-high nine goals throughout the contest.  The Royals once again outshot their opponents by a wide margin and converted those shots into another comfortable halftime lead.

It was a good start for the Rams, defending the Royals for 15 minutes before allowing the first goal.  However, Jake Opheim opened the floodgates for the Royals with his opening goal on assists from Ryan Ness and Curt Levalley.  This sparked a 15 minute stretch in which Bethel scored five times, getting a second goal from Opheim as well as consecutive goals from Ryan Ness and a pair from Stephen Gronseth as well.  

"I was extremely proud of the patience we showed in the first half, we scored some nice goals," recalls coach Iwaszkowiec.  This attitude of patience and perseverance has become a theme for the Royals through their first four games, as they have scored no earlier than the 13th minute, but have carried comfortable halftime leads in each game.

To further demonstrate signs of their success Wednesday, the Royals were able to get Jake Worthen, Jesse Caldwell, and Luke Chase their first goals of the season in the second period, which ultimately propelled Bethel to its 9-1 route.  When it was all said and done, the Royals received an assist or goal from 12 different players while holding the Rams to just four shots-on-goal behind another solid performance from goalie, AJ Syler.

The Royals improved their record to 3-1 after their big win and have two more home games remaining before they start a seven-game road trip.  The men's squad will play next on Saturday against Crown College and look to continue gathering momentum before heading into a tough MIAC schedule.