WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's men's soccer team (2-5-2) put on a goal-scoring clinic this afternoon at Ochrymowycz Field. The Cardinals welcomed the North Central (Minnesota) Rams (2-6-0) for a nonconference matchup played under a stunning sunset, securing their first clean sheet of the season with a commanding 5-0 shutout.

Saint Mary's dominated the second half with all five goals scored by five different players that led the Cardinals to a shutout. 

The Cardinals defense held strong, allowing only one shot on goal while recording 15 shots on target themselves.

Junior Ryan Horlock secured his first shutout of the season, making one save in a full 90 minutes of play. 

Saint Mary's and North Central remained scoreless after a competitive first half. The Cardinals applied the early pressure but neither side could capitalize on their opportunities.

Well, the second half? That's a different story.

The goals came in increments of two minutes. 

Sophomore Francesco Cardone opened the scoring with a goal straight down the middle in the 47th minute, junior Thomas Laaksonen got creative to set him up. 

Freshman Seth Konik and Laaksonen added to the tally with goals in the 49th and 51st minutes, respectively. Konik net his first goal as a Cardinal. It was an all out effort for the two, capitalizing on two key mistakes by the Rams to push their lead ahead.

Ryan Pavelka extended the lead further with a goal, his first of the season, in the 64th minute, assisted by Cardone. Sophomore Than Soe capped the scoring in the 87th minute, sealing the win for the Cardinals and netting his first career goal 

The Rams struggled to find the net, with several shots missing the target but it didn't matter as the Cardinals dominated the half.

The Cardinals now push their focus to their conference opponent Hamline on Saturday for their next game at 1:00 p.m. in St. Paul.