NAPERVILLE, Ill. — The North Park Vikings continued through College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) play on Wednesday night, battling North Central to a 2-2 draw at Benedetti-Wehrli Stadium. The result extends North Park's unbeaten streak to 13 matches and moves the Vikings into a tie with the Cardinals for first place in the conference standings.
North Central struck first in the 10th minute when the Cardinals converted a penalty kick to take a 1-0 lead. Not counting the PK, the Vikings did not allow a shot on goal through the first 45.
The Vikings responded quickly after halftime. Just under three minutes into the second half, junior midfielder Bastian Eikeland found the equalizer off an assist from freshman forward Gustav Finér, leveling the match at 1-1.
Eikeland delivered again in the 63rd minute, scoring his second goal of the night on a perfectly-placed free kick.
The Cardinals answered four minutes later, however, as Griffin French netted the equalizer in the 67th minute to make it 2-2. French uncorked a 40+ yard shot that tucked under the upper-right corner of the goal for the final tally of the match in Naperville.
Both sides searched for a go-ahead goal over the final 20 minutes, but neither defense yielded. North Park finished with a 14-12 advantage in total shots and held a 7-3 edge in shots on goal.
Eikeland paced the Viking attack with six shots, including five on target. Junior goalkeeper Melker Regland made a save in net for North Park.
With the draw, North Park and North Central are now tied atop the conference standings as the Vikings carry their 13-match unbeaten streak into their next league contest.
What's Next?
North Park (9-1-4, 3-0-2 CCIW) has the weekend off and returns to action Wednesday, October 21, traveling to face Elmhurst University (4-7-2, 1-4 CCIW). Kickoff at Langhorst Field is set for 7:00 p.m. CT.
