GALESBURG, Illinois - The Knox Prairie Fire were defeated by the North Central College Cardinals this Sunday at Jorge Prats field, falling by a final score of 1-0. With the loss, Knox's record sinks to 1-5-1 as they continue with non-conference play.

North Central's attack got off to a fast start, with several volleys on goal nearly finding their way into the net. As a result, the Prairie Fire were forced to remain on the defensive throughout much of the first half. Prairie Fire keeper Alexis Coronilla took up the challenge of directing the Knox defense while also seeing away several probing attempts on goal. Unfortunately, a solid shot by North Central's Aly Crum made its way through in the 32nd minute to put the Cardinals on the board first. Knox's offense could not muster much of an attack, being outshot 14-1. As the halftime whistle blew, the score remained 1-0 in favor of North Central.

The second half was also not very kind to the Prairie Fire, as the offense again struggled to create opportunities in front of the North Central goal. The Cardinals defensive line caught Knox offsides four times, frustrating them even when they managed to pass the ball through. While the Prairie Fire defense tightened up and didn't allow any serious threats on goal, a series of unsuccessful corner kicks around the 75th minute for Knox sealed the game, as they were unable to gather any more shots on goal.

"It was a tough game against a tough opponent," said head coach Taylor Houck. "We had great moments throughout the game and weren't able to finish. We know what we need to work on moving forward and are ready to tackle it before conference starts."

Knox looks to earn their second win of the season when they travel to play the University of Dubuque this Wednesday at 7:00 p.m.