NAPERVILLE, Ill. – The top-ranked and reigning national champion St. Olaf College men's soccer team ran its program-record unbeaten streak to 23 games by starting its season with a 2-0 road victory over North Central College on Friday evening at Benedetti-Werhli Stadium.

In a matchup of two programs that have both appeared in the NCAA Tournament in each of the last three seasons, St. Olaf (1-0) got goals from sophomore Abdirasak Bulale and first year Charlie Piller to blank North Central (0-1) and hand the Cardinals just their third loss in their last 35 home games (29-3-3) dating back to the start of the 2021 season. North Central received votes in the United Soccer Coaches Preseason Top 25 poll released earlier in the month.

With the victory, St. Olaf has not lost any of its last 23 games (20-0-3) dating back to a 2-0 loss at fifth-ranked Kenyon College on Sept. 10, 2023. The Oles will put the streak on the line again with a trip to the seventh-ranked University of Chicago for a 12 p.m. kickoff on Sunday, Sept. 1.

St. Olaf got off to a quick start when Bulale netted the second goal of his collegiate career in the fifth minute by lifting the ball over the onrushing goalkeeper from the left side of the box after being slipped in fifth-year senior Clemente Arcuch Puig. The Oles maintained the 1-0 lead into the final stages of the half before getting a last-second goal from Piller to double their lead at the break.

After North Central surrendered possession by trying to score from their own half of the field in the final 30 seconds, St. Olaf went the other way and opened up a 2-0 halftime lead when Piller got on the end of a long ball by junior Aidan Hillis and slotted the ball home with 0.6 seconds left after a mix-up between a North Central defender and the goalkeeper produced a loose ball in the box. The assist on Piller's debut goal was the second of Hillis' career.

After being outshot 9-4 in the opening 45 minutes, the Cardinals outshot the Oles by an 8-6 margin in the second half but could not find a way past senior Peter Forseth, who collected the 14th shutout of his career to move into a tie for fourth in program history in the category with Harry Ullmann '13. Forseth stopped all five shots on goal North Central managed in the game.