HAYS, Kan. - The Fort Hays State men's soccer team defeated No. 19 ranked Southern Nazarene 1-0 in Hays on Thursday (Oct. 20). The Tigers netted their lone goal at the end of the first half and held strong against a spraying of shots by the Crimson Storm in the second half to move into first place alone in the GAC/MIAA standings. FHSU improved to 8-4-4, 6-2-2 GAC/MIAA while SNU fell to 7-5-3, 5-2-2 GAC/MIAA.
In the first half, both squads made attempts to score early but couldn't quite piece anything together. At the end of the first half, the Crimson Storm had four shots and the Tigers had three with each squad putting one on target. The one on target for the Tigers netted their lone goal in the 43rd minute as Callum Frogson picked up the rebound off an SNU corner kick and ran the ball the length of the field before delivering a quick pass to Agustin Ayala who drove the ball past the keeper.
The Crimson Storm came alive offensively in the second half as they peppered the Tiger defense with 15 shots. Despite the plethora of offensive opportunities, SNU was unable to find the equalizer. This was the first home win for the Tigers over the Crimson Storm since 2019 when they played to a 6-1 final score. Kieran Brown collected three saves for the Tigers between the posts.
FHSU will be back in action on Saturday (Oct. 22) when they travel to Tahlequah, Okla. to take on Northeastern State in another crucial GAC/MIAA battle. Kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
