RIPON, Wisconsin – The Ripon men's soccer program weathered an early Lake Forest goal, scored soon after and held strong defensively the rest of the way to earn a 1-1 draw with the Foresters on Wednesday afternoon at Prairie Field.
 
In the 8th minute, Lake Forest (3-6-1, 1-0-1 MWC) was fouled just outside the box. After a give-and-go from Elliot Hull, Ifet Mrkalj found the back of the net to give the Foresters an early lead.
 
Ripon (2-2-4, 0-1-1 MWC) would not stay down for long, however. In the 13th minute, Eli Dietzel sent a beautiful ball into the box, and after a scrum, Christian Millan rocketed a shot past the keeper to even the score at 1 apiece. This was Millan's second goal of the season.
 
It was a defensive stalemate the rest of the way. Both teams had chances to pull ahead, but strong backlines and wet conditions kept the match scoreless for the final 77 minutes.
 
Shots were 24-11 in Lake Forest's favor. The Foresters had 11 shots on goal compared to Ripon's 3.
 
Jacob Oppeneer and Nick Bellisle had 3 shots apiece for the Red Hawks, who tied Lake Forest for the second consecutive meeting.
 
Sam Jahnke had a career-high 10 saves in net, playing all 90 minutes.
 
For the second consecutive match, five total yellow cards were issued. Lake Forest had 11 fouls, while Ripon had 7.
 
UP NEXT: Ripon visits Grinnell on Saturday (September 30) for the first of two matches on the road. First touch is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
 
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