Lisle, Ill. - The Concordia University Chicago men's soccer team (9-7-2, 6-4-2) fell short against Benedictine University men's soccer team (13-3-2, 9-2-1) in a heartbreaking loss in the opening match of the NACC Tournament.

From the start of the game, it was an intense matchup with consistent back and forth between the two. Starting in the goal for Concordia, junior Joseph Perez (Crystal Lake, Ill) found himself grabbing two saves on four shots before falling behind in the 38th minute off a header from Benedictine.

Coming into the second half looking for a comeback, the Cougars came out with vengeance. Their offensive efforts were finally answered after getting themselves a penalty kick in the 62nd minute following a handball in the box from Benedictine. Taking the penalty kick for the Cougars was sophomore Oscar Montejano (Zion, Ill.) as he found the back of the net for the first time of the night. Shortly after, on the other end of the field, another handball inside the box gave the Eagles a penalty kick with the chance to take the lead. Junior goalkeeper Nicholas Pasut (New Boston, Mich.) deflected the kick, keeping the Cougars in the game.

With the intensity at an all time high, the Cougars kept pressing on offensively working out in their favor as they found themselves with another opportunity for a penalty kick. Montejano stepped up for the second time tonight, put the ball in the left corner of the net to give Concordia a 2-1 advantage with 10 minutes to play.

With less than a minute on the clock, the Cougars attempted to play as defensively as possible, but the Eagles were able to sneak one past Pasut to push the game into overtime. Shortly into the first overtime period, the Eagles were able to find the back of the net yet again, ending the season for the Cougars. 
 

Closing out their 2021 season with a final record of 9-7-2 overall and 6-4-2 in conference, the Cougars end the season holding the longest win streak in program history as well as creating one of the most successful 4 year stretches that a senior class has held.