Mussell stars as Bulldogs win third straight

SIOUX CENTER, Iowa – Rachel Mussell continued her remarkable early-season play on Saturday as the Bulldogs opened GPAC action on the road. The sophomore midfielder had a hand in all three Concordia goals, powering head coach Lisa White’s squad to its third-straight victory with a 3-2 decision over Dordt College.

“We had some great performances,” White said. “We possessed the ball very well. We moved it around them. They threatened us very little, particularly in the first half. I’m really happy with how the team moved the ball and worked together. There was a lot of good stuff to take away from today. We’re excited to start the GPAC season with a win.”

Mussell got the Bulldogs (3-3, 1-0 GPAC) on the board early with a goal in the 10^th minute off the assist from junior defender Emily Fleming. The score remained at 1-0 in favor of Concordia until the 69th minute when Mussell struck for her second goal, and seventh of the season, by beating the Defender keeper to the corner on a brilliant finish.

Mussell wasn’t done yet. She then assisted sophomore forward Melissa Stine in the 74^th minute to give Concordia a seemingly commanding 3-0 lead. Stine used a couple of skillful touches to elude the Dordt (1-5-2, 0-1 GPAC) back line in netting her third goal of 2012.

However, the Defenders would fight back to a 3-2 score in the final 10 minutes with goals from Marissa Le Duc and Katie Heynen to beat Bulldog keeper Jessica Clifford. Clifford and company held on in the closing minutes to seal a second-straight win by a single goal.

Mussell stole the show with her success on the attack, pairing with sophomore midfielder Ashlie Slenicka for a potent offense.

“Rachel was awesome, and Ashlie really did well holding the ball,” White said. “Ashlie was very creative in her distribution and was effective in talking to her teammates so we had a clear understanding of what we were doing. Those two kids were phenomenal.”

Concordia out-shot Dordt 12-5 on the afternoon and had a 5-4 edge in shots on goal.

The Bulldogs continue GPAC play on Wednesday when Hastings visits Seward for a 5 p.m. contest.