Box Score | Season Stats | Infographic

BROOKLINE, Mass. – Sprinting out of the gate to the tune of three goals during the opening half hour of play, the Northeastern men's soccer team cruised to a 3-1 home victory on Wednesday night against Holy Cross.
 
Northeastern (5-9-0) found the back of the net on three of its first five shots of the match. Christian McKenna had the Huskies rolling less than nine minutes into the first half, polishing off the rebound from his own penalty kick to send NU in front, 1-0. Ten minutes later, Kevin Carvalho upped Northeastern's lead to 2-0 with the help of Charlton Muhlauri, a short while before Brendan Massie and Tristan Tippeconnic worked together to tack on a third goal for the home side.
 
Jonathan Thuresson made four saves and appeared to be on his way to his fifth clean sheet of the season, but a late penalty successfully taken by Arno Rupp allowed Holy Cross (5-7-2) to spoil the shutout.
 
Despite the Huskies' 7-6 edge in shots during the first half, the Crusaders commanded a 12-0 advantage during the second half, spinning the overall margin back in their favor, 18-7.
 
Northeastern brought on eight reserves during the match, including Harrison Balder, who made his 2016 season debut. Dan Korman, Brendan Massie, Chris Scatterday, and Edward Okey each played the full 90 minutes.
 
GOAL RECAPS
 
• Northeastern (ninth minute): Holy Cross committed five fouls during the opening 10 minutes of the match, but the fifth one occurring in the box awarded Northeastern its first penalty kick of the season. Upon having his strike blocked by the Crusaders' goalkeeper Bobby Hurstak, Christian McKenna lofted the rebound towards the center of the net, putting the Huskies in front, 1-0.
• Northeastern (19th minute): Making a left-to-right cut along the top of the Huskies' 18-yard box, Charlton Muhlauri fed a pass forward to Kevin Carvalho, who changed directions, crossing over his defender. Carvalho then hooked a shot around the hands of Hurstak, off the inside of the left post, and in.
• Northeastern (26th minute): Moving up the right side, Brendan Massie guided a pass to Tristan Tippeconnic near the top of the Huskies' 18-yard box. Tippeconnic continued the give-and-go play and returned the ball to Massie, who blasted a shot through the right post for Northeastern's third goal.
• Holy Cross (85th minute): With the Huskies eyeing their third clean sheet in four matches, Edward Okey committed a foul in the box, setting up Holy Cross with a late-game penalty try. Although Jonathan Thuresson guessed left, Arno Rupp went right as the Crusaders broke up the Huskies' shutout bid.
 
NOTEWORTHY
 
• Both Kevin Carvalho and Brendan Massie scored the first collegiate goals of their careers on Wednesday. Carvalho netted his first goal in 28 appearances at Northeastern, while Massie, a true freshman, scored his first goal during his 10th cap at Northeastern.
• The Huskies scored three goals in a match for the first time since Oct. 22, 2014, when NU defeated Delaware, 3-2.
• All six of Northeastern's first-half goals during 2016 have been scored at Parsons Field.
• Charlton Muhlauri registered his first assist in 35 appearances since Sept. 28, 2014.
• Tristan Tippeconnic's assist was the first collegiate point of his career (eighth appearance at NU).
• During his last four matches, Jonathan Thuresson has maintained a 0.48 goals against average and .857 save percentage.
 
UP NEXT
 
Northeastern will play its penultimate home match of the 2016 season on Saturday, Oct. 22, when the Huskies host UNCW on Senior Night (6 p.m. kickoff). Prior to the match, NU will honor the four members of its senior class: Harrison Balder, Marc Greenblatt, Khesanio Hall, and Christian McKenna.