NORTHFIELD, Minn. – The regionally-ranked St. Olaf College men's soccer team rode a three-goal second half to a 4-2 non-conference victory over No. 10-ranked UW-Eau Claire on Wednesday afternoon at Rolf Mellby Field.

After UW-Eau Claire (6-1-2) opened the scoring midway through the first half, St. Olaf (5-3-1) scored the game's next three goals – two on penalty kicks by junior Robi Buzakovic – to take a 3-1 lead early in the second half. The Blugolds made it a one-goal game in the 81st minute, but the Oles responded less than two minutes later through fifth-year senior Clemente Arcuch Puig to seal their first win over a nationally-ranked team this season.

The game was a rematch of last season's meeting in the "Sweet 16" of the NCAA Tournament, which the Oles won 4-3 on a late goal by Arcuch Puig. St. Olaf has won all four meetings in the all-time series between the two programs. In addition to being ranked No. 10 nationally, UW-Eau Claire was ranked No. 2 in this week's United Soccer Coaches Region IX poll, while St. Olaf checked in at No. 4 in the region.

The visitors got on the board first in the 23rd minute when Noah Malcook slotted the ball home after being played in up the middle by Carter Thiesfeld after a turnover near midfield. St. Olaf made it a 1-1 game in the final minute of the opening half when first year Charlie Piller won a penalty kick after being tripped up in the box. Buzakovic stepped up and converted from the spot to extend his goal-scoring streak to a career-high three games.

Early in the second half, the Oles got another penalty kick after Arcuch Puig was slide-tackled from behind when running onto a ball in behind the UW-Eau Claire defense. Buzakovic again scored from the spot for his team-leading fifth goal of the season, all five of which have come in the last five games.

St. Olaf extended its lead to 3-1 in the 56th minute when sophomore Abdirasak Bulale curled the ball into the lower-right corner from the top of the box for his fourth goal of the season in the 56th minute. A little over two minutes later, senior Peter Forseth preserved the Oles' two-goal lead by tipping a shot by All-American forward Nathan Donovan around the post.

UW-Eau Claire pulled to within a goal in the 81st minute when Owen Williams scored a back-post header off a cross from Malcook, but St. Olaf struck back less than two minutes later to reclaim a two-goal advantage. Senior Shea Bechtel created the goal by cutting the ball back to Arcuch Puig near the top of the box, and Arcuch Puig thumped it home to score for the third consecutive game in the series. Bechtel's assist made him the first student-athlete in program history to reach the 100-point milestone.

The Blugolds outshot the Oles by a 21-11 margin in the game, although St. Olaf held a 7-6 edge in shots on goal. Forseth made four saves in the win for St. Olaf, while Spencer Banks had two saves for UW-Eau Claire before being replaced late on.

The Oles will make the long trip to Duluth to play the College of St. Scholastica on Saturday, Sept. 28 at 3:30 p.m.