Another classic battle ends with an all too familiar result for the NIU men’s soccer team.

The Huskies fell 1-0 Saturday in front of a record crowd to No. 1 Akron, and have now lost six straight to their rival.

The Zips lone strike came in the 16th minute by freshman forward Darren Mattocks after a free kick was failed to be cleared by NIU, but the team sees the loss with a positive perspective.

“Outside of that one play, it was about as even as a game that you’re going to find against the best team in the country,” said NIU head coach Eric Luzzi.

NIU (5-4-2 overall, 0-2-0 MAC) was outshot by Akron (9-0-1, 3-0-0) 13-11, but the Huskies had an 8-4 advantage in shots on goal.

Even though the Zips controlled the ball for the majority of the match, NIU created chances with a lot of pressure on the defending MAC Champions.

“They weren’t ready for it,” said junior defender Francis Otira. “Being the No. 1 team, I think maybe they expected we would respect them and sit on the halfway line and expect them to come at us, but we said this is our home and let’s just get at them.”

The Huskies’ two biggest scoring chances came in the first half. In the 23rd minute, senior striker Juan Hoyos tried to slip a ball underneath the keeper, but was cleared off the line.

The Akron defense came up big a few minutes later after freshman midfielder Mino Kayser ripped a header towards goal, but was denied again.

“We always expect a tough game and expect [NIU] to leave it all out on the field,” said Akron head coach Caleb Porter. “They play with a lot of spirit and a lot of fight, and the way they play is very difficult to play against. I’m not sure there’s a college soccer team in the country that is more effective playing the way they play and that’s a credit to them.”

Zips sophomore keeper Anthony Ponikvar, who had previously only played 16 minutes in his career, subbed in for an injured David Meves and smothered every ball in reach. Ponikvar and his 6’5″ frame made five saves and was all over every NIU set piece and throw-in.

The 1,276 fans that found their way in created a new NIU Soccer Complex record and the Huskies fed off their liveliness.

“We needed energy from our guys and I think when the heat started to take over that our atmosphere and our environment and the fans today helped give our guys a little something to keep the energy higher for a longer period of time,” Luzzi said.