SEWARD, Neb. – It’s been a while since the Concordia University men’s soccer program has been in this kind of fight with Mount Marty. The Lancers are proving they can give anyone a tussle – and that includes fifth-ranked Hastings. In Saturday (Oct. 5) afternoon’s matchup, the Bulldogs finally got their attack going late in the affair and won, 2-0, while on their home turf.
This was an important one for head coach Jason Weides’ squad not to look past with Midland and Hastings on tap next week. Concordia is now 9-1 overall (second best start ever under Weides) and 4-0 in league play.
“It took a lot (to win today). They really tested us,” Weides said. “We knew they were capable of testing us because they’ve really improved the last few years. They’re really close to turning the corner and having even better results. Our two goals we scored were good goals, nice shots. It was a dicey game all the way up until that second goal. It never really seemed like a sure thing.”
There were only two combined shots for either team in the opening 45 minutes. If there’s one obvious thing the Bulldogs can improve upon, it’s finding ways to create more chances on the attacking end. But the two goals turned in by Concordia on Saturday were beauties, just in time to save it from a potential overtime.
In the 80th minute, Moises Jacobo skillfully played the ball around a couple of defenders and tapped a pass to Carlos Orquiz, who hammered a shot inside the right post for the game’s first goal. The next one was similarly impressive. Garrett Perry did most of the work himself while drilling a frozen rope into the back of the net from outside the 18. Perry now has three goals over the past two games.
The Bulldogs could then exhale with just over five minutes left on the clock. Said Orquiz, “What we struggled with was finding shots in the first half. We have to take them with more confidence and keep getting more of them.”
There were some moments when it appeared Mount Marty (3-6, 2-3 GPAC) might grab the lead. A turnover in the defensive third forced Eduardo Alba to make a save early in the second half. Then about midway through the second half, the Lancers had a corner kick ping pong around the box, just in front of the goal. Unfortunately for Mount Marty, it was another close call just like its 1-0 double overtime loss to Hastings. Concordia edged the Lancers in shots, 8-7. Mount Marty had a 6-5 advantage in corner kicks.
The Bulldogs will resume GPAC play on Wednesday when they host Midland (6-3-1, 2-1 GPAC) at 8 p.m. CT inside Bulldog Stadium. The two sides also met in Seward in the 2018 GPAC tournament quarterfinals. That battle saw Concordia celebrate a triumph in a PK shootout. The Bulldogs won last season’s regular-season meeting by a 3-1 score.
“We need to create more chances and more shots,” Weides said while previewing next week’s action. “It was frustrating today having two shots in the first half. Against those teams we’re going to have to create more than eight chances – or we’re going to have to be very efficient.”