River Forest, Ill. – The Concordia University Chicago men's soccer team had a double-overtime thriller in Cougar Stadium today, Sept. 22, as they hosted the Aurora University Spartans. After 110 minutes of play, the score was tied at 1-1 between the two teams, resulting in CUC's second tie of the conference season.
The first half was scoreless between the two teams. The Cougars and the Spartans added plenty of offensive pressure on their opponents as Aurora put up six shots and Concordia put up five. It wasn't until the 83rd minute that the ball found the back of the net for CUC. But the Spartans responded in the 88th minute off a free kick to tie the game. The two teams then battled it out for an extra 20 minutes, but no one was able to score. This resulted in a 1-1 tie between Aurora and CUC.
Highlights of the Match:
- Garrett Poynter (Noblesville, Ind.) scored the team's only goal of the match off a deflection from Aurora's goalkeeper. This is the freshman's third goal in two matches.
- Senior Ryan Kuhlman (Darien, Ill.) put plenty of offensive pressure on the Spartans. He contributed five shots, with one of those being on goal.
- Nicholas Pasut (New Boston, Mich.) made phenomenal saves in goal during his 110 minutes in the net. The junior made four saves along with other key defensive plays throughout the match.
- The defensive line anchored by Caleb Price (Cincinnati, Ohio), Michael Frank (Fort Wayne, Ind.) and Julian Yanez (Cicero, Ill.) stopped Aurora's offensive momentum numerous times this afternoon.
The Cougars will have two days off before they travel to DePere, Wis., to take on the newest member of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference, St. Norbert College. Kickoff for the contest on Saturday, Sept. 25, is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
