NIU men’s soccer coach Willy Roy said Kentucky showed the Huskies why they are the reigning Mid-American Conference champions Sunday.

The Wildcats, who won back-to-back MAC Championships in 1999 and 2000, beat the Huskies 4-0 at Huskie Soccer Field, giving them four straight wins over NIU since 1999.

“We just got beat by a better team today,” Huskie coach Willy Roy said. “Kentucky got opportunities and put them away early on today. They showed why they’re the conference champions. In the second half, we adjusted better but there wasn’t much we could do against them. We took shots but they weren’t quality shots.”

Kentucky (4-2-0 overall, 2-0-0 MAC) jumped on the board at the 11 minute mark when Antti Peltonen scored on a 12-yard shot. Kentucky scored again 13 minutes later when Nathan Fleetwood beat NIU goalie Rasih Pala with a 12-yard shot off a deflection of John Monebrake’s pass into the corner of the net.

J.D. Stephenson scored on a penalty kick at the 29:07 mark of the first half after NIU was called for a foul in the penalty area, giving the Wildcats a 3-0 first half lead. Peltonen then scored his second goal of the game in the second half on a 12-yard blast.

“I have to give Kentucky a lot of credit,” Roy added. “They have strong defenders and they challenge for every ball. They proved why they’re a top team. It’s not that we didn’t try, but they didn’t give us much today.”

On Friday, the Huskies (2-5-0, 0-1-0) lost to Loyola 1-0. The match was the first loss the Huskies suffered in 14 meetings against the Ramblers. The Huskies won the first 12 matches and the 13th game ended in a tie.

Roy said the team is trying hard, but they’re not playing smart enough when they have to force an issue.

“We’re better off right now if teams pressure us and we rely on counterattacks,” he said. “We’re not making good decisions with the ball. I give my team an ‘A’ for effort, but a ‘C-minus’ for decision-making. We’re creating opportunities but we’re not doing what we have to do in order to be successful.”

Loyola’s Brian Contreras gave the Ramblers the 1-0 victory when C.J. Bachmann found Contreras for a 14-yard shot.

The Huskies had a chance to tie the match in the closing seconds, but Andrew Conti’s shot went over the crossbar. The Huskies had three shots hit the goal posts — including a 35-yard blast by Peter Agrimson midway through the second half — as Loyola goalkeeper Joe Trimberger registered the shutout with seven saves.

“We have to understand that that’s how it goes on the road, get it over, and play harder,” Roy said. “This was an extremely physical game. Every time the ball went in the air, there was pushing and elbows being thrown.”