Sept. 2, 2015 - In a game that felt like it was being played in the heat of the deep South, it would be the Concordia Alabama Hornets [2-0] that would sting the Concordia Chicago Cougars [0-1] by a score of 2-1 in River Forest this afternoon.

The Cougars would be on the board in the sixth minute when Roberto Avila (Cicero, IL/Morton East) would bury a direct kick in the top right corner for the first goal. This all took place after the Hornets' goalie received a red card after coming out of the box to play a Cougar pass with his hands. This would begin the Cougars' man advantage for the remainder of the game because of the red card but, unfortunately, the Cougars could not capitalize on multiple good looks at the Hornets' net.

This contest would see a lot of physical play back and forth between both teams leading to six total cards being shown (five yellow,one red) and a total of 29 fouls. Following yellow cards being shown to both teams in the 25th minute, the Hornets would push forward. A good ball played forward coupled with fancy footwork by the Hornets would lead to a close-in shot attempt that would be saved initially by Jorge Guzman (Cicero, IL/Morton East), but the rebound ended up at the foot of Samson Metelus, who would find the back of the net to tie the score at 1-1.

The second half would see more physical play between the two teams trying to push the ball forward in their respective zones. The Hornets would find greater success as they outshot the Cougars by a 26-7 margin. Guzman would register 10 saves for the match, keeping his team in the chase.

The Hornets would break the tie in the 72nd minute with a goal very similar to the first goal. A series of passes played forward would result in a Hornets' shot attempt that was blocked. However, the deflection landed in the perfect shooting position for the Hornet's Alaye Imira de Brito who would blast it over the head of Guzman for the deciding goal.

The Cougars will have a couple days to rest up for a back-to-back weekend starting at Knox College on Saturday at 1:30 and then concluding with a home match against Millikin University on Sunday at 3 p.m.