In a match where the players fought hard and the wind blew harder, the Concordia University Chicago men's soccer team (0-3-1) couldn't quite find an equalizing goal and fell 1-0 to the Dominican University Stars (5-0) on Sunday afternoon at Concordia Stadium.

It was the closest game between the two teams since the Cougars last victory in the Division Street Rivalry in 2017, when they were the ones to win 1-0. 

The game's lone goal came in the 35th minute when a Cougars' clearance ricocheted off an unsuspecting player and fell perfectly into the path of Stars' forward Vicente Castro. He barely beat CUC goalkeeper Nicholas Pasut (New Boston, Mich.) to the loose ball and slotted home what proved to be the game-winning goal.

Pasut, meanwhile, made four saves and lowered his goals-against-average this season to 2.8. 

Offensively, freshman midfielder Oscar Montejano was everywhere. Playing in a free role behind forwards Ryan Kuhlman (Darien, Ill.) and Gerardo Medina (Cicero ,Ill.), he was frequently on the ball and made good runs in-behind the Stars' defenders. He led the Cougars with three shots (two on goal) and frequently tracked back to help on defense as well. 

Cougars' head coach Michael Arango said after the game that he was incredibly proud of the effort his players displayed today in a difficult and physical match against a strong opponent.

The Cougars will hope the strong performance carries over as they head down the stretch of this shortened spring season. They next travel to Aurora University on Wednesday night at 7 PM with live coverage available on the Spartans' athletics website.