It was a week of close games for the Becker boys soccer team, as the Bulldogs dropped two close games in the M8 Conference before returning to the winning column against Central MN Christian.

Last Thursday, the boys hosted the Monticello Magic in the “Red Card Cancer Night” and fell in a hard fought battle, 1-0.

“We held this game in conjunction with the American Cancer Society,” Coach Nick Crowley said. “From raffles, to our halftime shootout featuring school principals Dave Kreft and Chantel Boyer, our team raised over $500 to put toward the fight against cancer.”

While the crowd was generous with its donations, the weather didn’t cooperate and it turned into a wet night for a soccer game. The Magic netted the game’s only goal with just minutes remaining in the first half.

“As well as we played, we just couldn’t put one in the back of the net,” Crowley said.

Monday night, Becker traveled to North Branch to face the Vikings and again it was a close conference match, with Becker falling 2-1. 

“We controlled most of the possession in the first half, and the Vikings looked to counterattack... that’s just what they did in the first half to open the scoring,” Crowley said. 

However, the Bulldogs responded with a goal of their own from sophomore Eric Kyaw, assisted by sophomore Rowen Klug. The half ended at 1-1. 

“Much like the first half, we controlled possession in the second half but couldn’t find a goal,” Crowley said. “The game went to extra time, where we once again suffered a heartbreaking overtime loss to a conference opponent.” 

Tuesday evening, the team again hit the road, this time a two hour drive to Prinsburg where the Bulldogs picked up a 4-2 win over Central Minnesota Christian.

“Senior captain Micah Boyer opened the scoring with a pair of penalty kicks in the first half,” Crowley said. CMC clawed one back, but sophomore Tate Salvevold added a third goal to put the Bulldogs ahead 3-1 at the half. In the second half, CMC found another goal to pull within one goal. However, freshman Asher Olson assisted Boyer for his third goal of the game to make it 4-2. 

“Then things got a little nerve-racking, as after acquiring a red card, we played the last 15 minutes of the game down a man,” Crowley said. However, the Bulldog defense held on for a 4-2 victory.

“We played some great games this last week or so, and we were unlucky not to get a few more wins in the last six games,” Crowley said. “It was nice to come away, especially after a long trip, with a win.”

With the win, the Bulldogs improved their record to 4-5 on the season.