JONA, Switzerland (Interstat) — Valdes Ngana scored a goal and added an assist as Neuchatel Xamax defeated Rapperswil-Jona 3-2 on Friday at Sportstadion Grünfeld Platz 1 in a Challenge League opener. Ngana opened the scoring in the 19th minute. Lorik Emini doubled the lead in first-half stoppage time. Liridon Mulaj made it 3-0 early in the second half. Rapperswil-Jona rallied with two goals from substitute Jessé Hautier, who scored in the 77th minute and then in the fourth minute of stoppage time, but the comeback fell short. Hautier’s brace came off the bench. Defenders Adonis Ajeti and substitutes Salim Ben Seghir and Eris Abedini each recorded an assist. Yellow cards were issued to Ajeti in the 41st minute, Abedini in the 44th, Ngana in the 63rd and Ben Seghir in the first minute of added time. Neuchatel Xamax improved to 1-0 in the Challenge League and overall. Rapperswil-Jona fell to 0-1 in both competitions.