Box Score BETHANY, Okla. — Matthew Lawrence's goal at the end of the first half closed the gap for Southern Nazarene, but it was not enough as Jacob Stevens scored two goals for Harding in the first half to give them a 2-1 victory.
 
The first half was a back and forth battle as both teams fought to keep possession. The Bisons (1-2-0, 1-0-0 MIAA) scored in the 33^rd minute when Stevens put Gehrig Haberstock's pass into the net from inside the box that gave Harding a 1-0 lead. He followed that up with another goal in the 36^th minute when he got loose in the middle of the field and chipped the ball over the keeper's head to extend the lead to 2-0.
 
Matthew Lawrence got the Crimson Storm (1-5-0, 0-1-0 MIAA) on the board in the 44^th minute as he scored his first goal of the season off a pass from Gustavo Mendoza to close the gap to 2-1.
 
Southern Nazarene was aggressive on offense in the second half as they attempted nine shots in the period. They put two shots on goal in the second half, but they also had some other great opportunities to score that were thwarted by Harding's defense. Javier Caballeros shot in the 83^rd minute was just slightly high as it bounced off the crossbar. Oscar Barcenas' shot in the 89^th minute was blocked, which was SNU's last chance to score.
 
The Crimson Storm attempted 16 shots with six being on goal. The Bisons attempted 12 shots with six being on goal.
 
Harding's Thomas Shults recorded five saves and SNU's Dakota Ellicott recorded four saves in his first career start.
 
Southern Nazarene will host their second MIAA game of the season as Fort Hays State comes to town Saturday at 2 p.m.