CRETE, Neb. – For the 90 minutes of action in Crete, Neb., the Concordia University Men’s Soccer team exerted itself as the clear aggressor. It simply took a while to put that first goal on the board. At long last, Ryan Wokutch found the back of the net in the 73rd minute, carrying the Bulldogs to what culminated in a 3-0 victory at Doane on Wednesday (Oct. 16). Concordia is 9-0-4 over its last 13 meetings with the rival Tigers.
Head Coach Jason Weides’ squad has yet to drop a conference game as it pushed the league mark to 3-0-4 (4-2-8 overall). The latest victory took contributions from 20 Bulldogs who stepped onto the field.
“It was a really good team effort overall,” Weides said. “Certainly it was frustrating as the game wore on that we were unable to get that first goal until late in the contest. The reality is we created a lot of good chances and their keeper had an outstanding game, made a lot of good saves and was a big factor in it taking us so long to get that first goal. They caused us a few challenges on counter attacks, but I thought we controlled the play in the first half.”
Wokutch and company were not going to accept another conference draw in a game the visitors dominated (18-2 shot count). Played into the box by Zahid Falcon, Wokutch finished with his left foot while squeezing the ball through a narrow angle for his second goal of 2024. The Paola, Kan., native proceeded to celebrate with multiple back flips. That was only a start. Dependable senior Martin Herrera rippled the back of the net in the 83rd and 85th minutes for his team high sixth and seventh goals, respectively, of the campaign. Hugo Garrote earned an assist on the latter goal.
Finally, the floodgates had opened after Doane keeper Samuel Montanez saved Concordia’s first six shots on goal. It felt like it was simply a matter of time on an evening when the Tigers mustered a grand total of two shots (one on goal). A stellar collective defensive effort helped Bulldog keeper Nolan Fuelberth record his fourth shutout of the season. Fuelberth saved a shot placed on frame by Doane’s Ameer Madden.
The biggest downside to come from Wednesday’s game was the injury of two Concordia center midfielders. On the positive side, the subs that were called upon by Weides answered in the affirmative.
Said Weides, “We had some guys really step up even though they hadn’t been playing as many minutes. Zahid Falcon has really been improving and we knew he was ready. He took his opportunity and played really well and was a big factor in us winning that game. Ryan Brown came in and played well. Everyone who stepped on the field was ready, and I thought we had good energy from the bench as well.”
Weides also commended a back line that included subs Michael Lindberg and Adrian Wambua and was anchored by center backs Iker Casanova and Michael Wyvill, as well as rock solid freshman Sean Stratman. Additionally, Weides gave credit to Spencer Kaufman for hassling Doane’s Ameer Madden, a dangerous attacking threat with six goals and five assists on the season.
The Tigers (4-7-2, 2-5 GPAC) have not beaten the Bulldogs since 2012. Concordia is now 17-0-10 over its last 27 GPAC regular season games.
For the first time since Waldorf became a GPAC member (starting in 2023 for soccer), Concordia will be headed to Forest City, Iowa. That meeting will take place at 7:30 p.m. CT on Saturday. The Warriors slipped to 0-11-1 overall (0-6 GPAC) with Wednesday’s 4-0 nonconference loss at Culver-Stockton College (Mo.). The Bulldogs defeated Waldorf in Seward by a 6-0 score in 2023.