NORTHFIELD, Minn. – Junior
Charlie Piller's early second-half goal was enough to give the No. 1-ranked St. Olaf College men's soccer team a 1-0 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) victory over regionally-ranked Augsburg University on Saturday at Rolf Mellby Field.
Piller's 52nd-minute strike was the lone goal of the game as St. Olaf (9-0-0, 2-0-0 MIAC) blanked Augsburg (2-1-4, 1-1-1 MIAC) for its sixth shutout in nine games this season. Three of the Oles' nine victories this season have come by 1-0 margins. St. Olaf sat atop this week's United Soccer Coaches national poll, while the Auggies were ranked No. 7 in the North Region balloting.
The win also extended St. Olaf's regular-season MIAC unbeaten streak to 34 games (28-0-6). The Oles' last regular-season loss to a conference foe was a 2-1 defeat at eighth-ranked Gustavus Adolphus College on Oct. 15, 2022.
In a game where the two teams combined for just 11 shots, Piller drove a low shot that skidded off the wet turf, glanced off the Augsburg goalkeeper's palm, and flew into the top-right portion of the goal in the 52nd minute. The goal was the junior's third of the season, moving him into a tie for second on the team, and was assisted by junior
Harry Ross, who recorded his first assist of the season.
Junior
Beckett Carlson made all three of his saves in the second half while tallying his sixth shutout in nine starts this season for St. Olaf. Augsburg had a 7-4 advantage in shots, while shots on goal were even at 3-3 in the game.
The Oles will face crosstown-rival Carleton College at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 30 at Bell Field.
