THE WEBSTER CITY BOYS SOCCER SQUAD celebrate their win over Humboldt on Thursday evening. (DFJ photo by Tyler Anderson)

Since their heartbreaking 3-2 road loss against No. 2-ranked Humboldt on April 3, the Webster City boys’ soccer team circled the date of their rematch with the Wildcats. The purple and gold side knew they were so close to upending their rivals on the pitch.

In a crucial North Central Conference fixture against Humboldt, held last Thursday at Lynx Field in Webster City, the Lynx scored early and held firm before knocking off Humboldt in a 2-1 nailbiter.

The win was a two-fold triumph for the Webster City side. It marked the Lynx’s first triumph over the Wildcats since 2019 — a span of six matches, and provided the men in purple with a share of the top of the NCC standings with the Wildcats and Hampton-Dumont-CAL.

Webster City also continued to remain hot, capturing their sixth consecutive victory.

Webster City improved to 7-1 overall and 7-1 within the conference, while Humboldt dipped down to 5-1 in league play and 7-1 overall.

The Lynx got on the board at the 33rd minute, as junior midfielder Eduardo Perez was tripped up inside of the box, which prompted a penalty kick. Moments later, Perez boot skidded to his right and into the back of the net.

No more than 10 minutes later, sophomore midfielder Eric Calles found an opening in the Humboldt defense before taking a shot on goal. Humboldt goalkeeper Karson Rubel couldn’t hold onto the ball, allowing sophomore Eddy Fuentes to tap in his 11th goal of the 2023 spring campaign.

At intermission, the Lynx established a 2-0 upset bid.

Humboldt pressured the home side relentlessly in the second half, before attracting a penalty in the 65th minute. Taking advantage of the call, Wildcats’ junior midfielder Cristhian Ramirez stunned senior goalkeeper Jonny Magdaleno to narrow the Lynx’s lead to one score.

Even though the senior couldn’t reel in his fourth clean sheet of the season, Magdaleno held firm in front of goal, even tipping away a potential equalizer in the dying moments of the match.

Next up for the Lynx is another vital fixture, hosting Clear Lake for an NCC tilt at Lynx Field in Webster City.

The Lions come in with a 4-3 mark within the NCC and 7-3 overall. However, Clear Lake has also been hot as of late, winning their fifth straight with an 8-2 win over Aplington-Parkersburg last Friday in Clear Lake.