Oct. 10, 2015 -  In a game that was a tale of two halves, it would be the Concordia- Chicago Cougars with some late heroics to force overtime and then take down the Lakeland College Muskies by a score of 3-2.

The first half would go the Muskies' way. It took them just six minutes into the match to net their first goal. Mirko Tadic would take the corner for the Muskies and land it perfectly into the box, lining up Zac Kline for the goal and the 1-0 lead for the visitors.

Both teams traded shots but with no result until the 28^th minute. Tadic showed off some exquisite dribbling skills through the Cougar defenders and finish just inside the right post, giving the Muskies the 2-0 lead.

CUC head coach Micah Middendorf's message to the team at halftime was, "Basically relax, keep our concentration and play through, Lakeland started to play deeper and we were able to play a little more in the midfield in the second half."
 
Middendorf's message was heard loud and clear, as the Cougars wasted no time getting to work on the comeback. In the 53^rd minute, the Cougars cut the Muskies' lead in half. Roberto Avila (Cicero, IL/Morton East) would lead Gibril Jobe (Berwyn, IL/Morton West) perfectly, allowing Jobe to find the back of the net just to the right of the outstretched Muskies' goalkeeper.

The rest of the second half would see the intensity and the physicality of play drastically increase, with both teams picking up multiple fouls. It could be seen though that the Muskies defense was starting to get back on their heels as the Cougars continued to mount their attack.

With time winding down, the Cougars found a way to equalize the score. The Cougars were awarded a free kick after a Muskies' foul. Avila took the kick from roughly 40 yards out. He sent it sailing through the air perfectly to the head of Daniel Krajewski (Addison, IL/Addison Trail) who directed it inside the far post, causing the Cougar fans to erupt in celebration.

The brief overtime period saw more of the Cougar dominance. The CUC faithful would not have to wait long into the overtime period to cheer again. In the 92^nd minute, Fabian Robles (Cicero, IL/St. Joseph) led CUC leading scorer Joey Malme (Green Bay, WI/NEW Lutheran) with a pass into the box that he would trap off his chest to his foot and send it into upper left side of the net, giving the Cougars the 3-2 victory.

Middendorf said about the game, "The boys showed a lot of fight, They showed what they are capable of when they are at full concentration. As a whole, I saw the whole team come together, supporting and encouraging everyone from top to bottom."

The Cougars (5-7-1, 1-4-0 NACC) will be back in action on Wednesday evening for a NACC battle with Benedictine University. That match is scheduled to start at 7 p.m in Lisle.