YORK, Neb. – Despite an 11-6 advantage in the shot count, the Concordia University men’s soccer team fell at the hands of conference rival York College on Tuesday afternoon (Aug. 28). The 2-1 victory for the Panthers ended an extended drought for their program, which had not upended the Bulldogs since 2007, prior to the start of Jason Weides’ tenure as head coach.
The defeat was Concordia’s first against a nonconference opponent since Oct. 18, 2016. The Bulldogs were coming off a 4-2 home win over Tabor College (Kan.) in the season opener on Aug. 25.
York (2-1) capitalized on the few chances it created on its attacking end. It got a goal apiece from subs Johan Rodriguez and Arturo Gutierrez. The latter earned credit for the game winner when he found the back of the net in the 81st minute. That goal broke a 1-1 tie that lasted for just over 16 minutes.
For the second outing in a row, junior David Carrasco came off the bench to put away a goal. He surfaced with the equalizer in the 64th minute, erasing what had been a 1-0 halftime deficit. Jack Arra assisted the lone Concordia goal.
Panther goalkeeper Francisco Esteves made all five of his saves over the final 45 minutes to preserve the win. He denied a shot from both Angel Alvarez and Carlos Ferrer in the final minute with the Bulldogs attempting to force overtime. Ferrer’s three shots were a team high.
York is in the midst of a five-game run against GPAC opponents to open up its season. Head coach Alex Latorre’s squad owns a win over Doane and has also suffered a loss to Briar Cliff. The Panthers finished 2017 at 5-12-1 overall.
Getting back into the win column will be no easy task for Concordia, which will welcome Bellevue University to Bulldog Stadium for a 3:30 p.m. CT kickoff on Saturday. The Bruins are 3-0-1 with a 3-2 upset of seventh-ranked Columbia College (Mo.) on their résumé. Last season Concordia protected its home turf by toppling Bellevue, 3-0, in late September.