Double overtime PK goal sends Bulldogs to first defeat

SEWARD, Neb. – Playing for the second time in as many days, the Bulldogs went to two overtime sessions with visiting William Penn University (Iowa) before falling by a 1-0 score. The Statesmen (2-0) stole a road win with a penalty kick goal by Milo Bruce-Burgess in the 102nd minute, marking the first tally allowed this season by Concordia in two games.

Seventh-year head coach Jason Weides’ team slipped to 1-1 overall.

“We didn’t bounce back as well as we hoped,” Weides said, referring to the quick turnaround after Friday night’s 1-0 win over Bethany College. “It’s early in the season and we’re just not quite there. I think this gave us a benchmark of where we need to go. Overall it just wasn’t quite the performance we needed.”

A hand ball in the box set up the penalty kick opportunity for Bruce-Burgess with 8:35 remaining in the second overtime. The native of Brockenhurst, England, scooted the ball to the left of Bulldog keeper Brendan Buchanan, who dove in the opposite direction. Buchanan finished with seven saves a day after recording his fifth career shutout.

Concordia narrowly missed on golden goal opportunities in the first overtime session on three occasions involving junior midfielder Gideon Soenksen. He missed left just outside the six-yard box and then later delivered two well-placed corner kicks that found Will Gabbert. One of his attempts was sent away by the quick reflexes of William Penn keeper Mason Bandy.

“We had a couple chances in overtime,” Weides said. “One we slipped through and went just wide of the frame. Then we had back-to-back corners that we almost scored on. To be fair, the keeper made some outstanding saves. We had a header from about seven yards out, point blank, and it was going to the back of the net. The keeper just got a touch on it and pushed it wide.”

Bandy made two notable saves in the first half, denying shots from Soenksen.  Bandy saved a header from Soenksen in the in the 10th minute. Roughly two minutes later, Soenksen had a great chance when he wrestled himself free from a defender and lofted the ball towards the left post. The shot inside the box was thwarted by a diving Bandy.

The Bulldogs breathed sighs of relief on several occasions late in the first half. Aggressive Statesmen attacker Angelo Kelly narrowly missed to the left of the goal late in the middle of the first half and then later to the right of the goal on a one-on-one chance near the 60-minute mark. William Penn finished with a 22-11 advantage in shots.

Having played roughly 20 hours earlier, Weides used more of his bench on Saturday. A total of 18 Bulldogs saw action on Saturday. Sophomore Andrew Mussell made his collegiate debut, getting minutes in the backfield.

“We knew we would have to dive into our bench even more than we did last night,” Weides said. “We had about 20 hours to bounce back from an intense game. I think where our fitness level is at right now showed a little bit.”

Next up for the Bulldogs is another Friday-Saturday weekend slate, Sept. 5-6. Concordia will play two neutral contests in Hastings, Neb., beginning with Hannibal La-Grange (Mo.) at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and ending with Saint Francis University (Ill.) at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday. Weides’ squad will not return home until Sept. 23 when it welcomes Waldorf College (Iowa) to town.