CHICAGO, Ill. -- North Park Men's Soccer picked up some votes in the recent United Soccer Coaches (USC) National Top 25 Poll released on Tuesday afternoon. 

The Vikings were the only College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) team represented in the polling, as North Park receives their first national recognition of the 2026 season. Additionally, North Park jumped to third in the USC's Region VIII polling, while North Central fell to eighth.

North Park (4-1-2) has suffered just one defeat this season, losing to now 7th-ranked U-Chicago in the Vikings' season opener on September 1. Since then, the Blue & Gold have gone undefeated in their past six matches and have rattled off five straight shutouts. North Park joins Illinois Wesleyan as the only two conference teams with five shutouts.

Sophomore goalkeeper Arvid Skoglund defended the NPU net nearly every minute of those five shutouts and was rewarded with CCIW Defensive Player of the Week honors last week for his three-shutout, 11-save week. Fellow sophomore and defender David Tracewicz claimed the same honor on Tuesday morning after boasting a pair of his first collegiate goals in NPU's fourth and fifth shutouts.

Three players have scored more than one goal for North Park this season; junior midfielder Bastian Eikeland, freshman forward Gustav Finér, and Tracewicz have all found the back of the net twice in 2026. Eikeland also adds a pair of assists as a deep Viking bench has led to 14 different players contributing at least one point.

North Park (4-1-2) is finally back home at the Holmgren Athletic Complex tomorrow, September 23, to take on the Wisconsin-Whitewater Warhawks. Kickoff in Chicago is set for 7:00 PM CT.