HOUSTON – Houston Christian University hit on all cylinders on Sunday night, flying past Oral Roberts University 3-1 at Sorrels Field.

It was the fourth win in five for the Huskies, who jumped out in front seven minutes in and never looked back.
 
Picking up where they left off in California, the Huskies came out attacking from the kick-off. One the exact stroke of seven minutes in, Ryan Okerayi was clipped in the box by ORU keeper Jakub Grzesiak to earn a penalty.
 
Okerayi for the second time in as many matches stepped to the spot and calmly connected, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead they would not relinquish.
   
HCU would keep up the pressure, getting several good looks, including a chance from Joby Reid on a breakaway in the 25th minute that was saved before taking the one-nil lead to the break.
 
In the second half, the two teams bounced back and forth, neither squad willing to give much ground. In the 61st minute, the Huskies earned a corner. Ben Thirkill swirled it in to Nico Kross, whose header glanced to Hans Leza for a redirect and a 2-0 lead for the Huskies.
 
That's how it would stay until the 86th minute. One frantic push after another finally resulted in a corner for ORU and an Emmanuel Denis entry found Emilio Cazares for the score, cutting the lead in half with still four minutes to play.
 
Nailbiting time didn't last long. ORU would earn another corner in the 89th minute, but the ball was punched out of the box and found its way to Aidan Lopez, who then raced all the way down the left sideline. It was there he would hit Ian Belong streaking down the middle of the field. Belong would softly connect with a left footed shot past a drawn out Grzesiak for his first career goal that would put the game on ice for HCU.
 
HCU posted its fifth straight match with double-figure shots, with the two teams tying on attempts. The staunch defensive effort held the Eagles to just two shots on target, with Alex Aitken, the school's leader in career saves, needing to make just one save on this night to secure the victory. It was his 20th career win, becoming just the third goalkeeper in school history to hit that mark.
 
Ryan Okerayi had his team-best fourth goal of the season while taking a team-high three shots. Joby Reid and Jireh Oyebamiji each had a pair of shots, while Leza notched his first goal since October 8, 2023 against Eastern Illinois. Belong had his first career goal on the first assist of the season by Lopez, and Kross added his second helper of the campaign.
 
Oral Roberts (1-4-1) got three shots, two on goal, by Emilio Cazares, who scored his second goal of the season. Grzesiak saw 12 shots and made four saves.
 
HCU is now 4-1 on the season, with the victory knotting the all-time series with ORU at 6-6-4. It is the best five-match start to a season since the 2007 team opened up 5-0. After playing that handful of games over a 15-day stretch, the Huskies will now get a much-deserved break, not playing again for one week. HCU returns to the pitch next Sunday on the road, taking on Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers.  
 
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