HELENA, Mont. - The Carroll College Men's Soccer team found their first CCC win of the 2026 season on Thursday, beating Northwest 2-1 on a perfect night on Valley Bank Field at Nelson Stadium.
Offense has been at a premium for the Fighting Saints (2-2-2, 1-0-1) on the young season, but the return of 2024 CCC Offensive Player of the Year
Felix Billard (Mallorco, Spain / SR) to the lineup proved highly beneficial in a 2-1 win over the Eagles (2-4-1, 0-3).
Cyrille Wangama (Spokane, Wash. / SO) provided first half fireworks for the Saints on Thursday. The shifty sophomore scored his first goal of the season in spectacular fashion, bringing a hearty crowd at Nelson Stadium to their feet. Wangama flew past the Northwest back line, catching up to a pair of touch passes from
Sean Balen (Mukilteo, Wash. / SR), and
Felix Billard before burying a shot into the right side of the net to put Carroll up 1-0 in the 28th minute.
The 1-0 lead would stick into the halftime break, but Northwest would eventually find an equalizer. Clayton Johnson, a 6-7 defender, used all of his height advantage to leap over everyone and score a header off a corner kick from Dustin Le in the 59th minute, evening things up at 1-1.
Just minutes later, Northwest's Nick Rivera was shown a red card, forcing him to leave the pitch and send the Eagles down a man for the final half our. Carroll didn't waste the opportunity, upping the pressure exponentially.
The uptick in Carroll's pressure paid dividends in the 70th minute, as Billard would make good on a gorgeous cross from Balen - striking the ball in-air and beating the keeper for his third goal on the season.
Balen was instrumental in the Saints' win, making heady plays all over the pitch and assisting on both goals to help Carroll move to 1-0-1 in league play.
Dane Quinn (Helena, Mont. / JR) was effective in net all night long, though not called upon much. Quinn posted a clean sheet, turning away all three shots the Eagles put on net.
The Saints will now turn their attention towards a 2:30 p.m. tilt with the Geoducks of Evergreen State, looking to build momentum in their pursuit of the program's second CCC Championship.
Be sure to visit www.carrollathletics.com Saturday evening for a full recap of the action, and for complete coverage of the Fighting Saints all season long.
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