Coming into its first MAC conference game against Florida Atlantic, NIU men’s soccer’s players and coaches made it quite clear this was a new start to the season.

The Huskies (2-5-2, 1-0-0 MAC) got the result they were looking for as they started off their “new season” with a 2-0 win Sunday against the Owls.

After not scoring in the first half of their previous eight games, the Huskies finally ended that streak with a strike from Isaac Kannah in the 23rd minute. Kannah got the ball from a James Stevenson cross and put it home to give his team the 1-0 lead.

With the scoring frustrations that have gone on in the past couple games, coach Eric Luzzi knew how important it was to get on the scoreboard first.

“Very [important],” Luzzi said. “I think some of our issues at various points of the season so far have been create all the chances, not finishing them, and then the guys put a lot of pressure on themselves because they work hard and they care.”

Senior goalkeeper Jordan Godsey, who had seven saves in the match, knew how big Kannah’s goal was for the team.

“It was just a relief,” Godsey said. “We’ve been trying to get leads and we’ve never had a big lead before. It just felt like after that first score we were in control of the game.”

The next and final goal came in the second half as Stevenson scored his third goal of the season.

“It was pretty lucky, to be honest,” Stevenson said. “I didn’t really connect well with the shot, but I always say if you put it on target you always have a chance of it going in, so it was pretty good.“

The Huskies held onto their 2-0 lead for the remainder of the match, giving them their first win in MAC play.

“It’s massive,” Luzzi said. “We talked a lot about that it didn’t really matter up to this point. It’s a brand new season and what I know right now is our record is one and zero.”

Luzzi was also proud of his team’s performance in the strong Florida heat.

“It’s just not an easy place to play,” Luzzi said. “It was 90 degrees and humid today. For Atlantic, that’s something they are used to, and we haven’t been used to that for a month. I thought the guys did a pretty good job to put in pretty close to a 90-minute performance in conditions that are not easy, so I’m pleased with that.”