ORANGE CITY, Iowa – Starting on the road for the conference opener, the Bulldogs and Red Raiders couldn’t surmount many quality shots on goal with slippery conditions on Saturday (Sept. 20) at the NWC Soccer Complex. Northwestern edged out Concordia University, Nebraska Men’s Soccer (2-1) as both teams tallied three shots in front of the net apiece. The two teams totaled 33 fouls with the home team having the majority (22).
Head Coach Jason Weides’ squad moves to 2-6 in the season and 0-1 in the GPAC.
“Overall, we just didn’t play well enough,” Coach Weides said. “In the first half, there was not a lot for either team in high quality chances. Northwestern probably adapted to the long slow surface better than we did. Our back-to-goal is an area we can improve on a lot. We lost too many possessions back-to-goal. This is a moment for us to show our character and our resolve. You know, we were really excited about our second season. The non-conference play being over and GPAC starting. We didn’t get what we wanted in the first match and we have to respond like champions.”
As the time went down, the Bulldogs were looking for a score to put the side in striking distance for an equalizer. Concordia took a corner, and Joe McCarroll brought the ball down off his chest toward Kai Olbrich. The forward buried the goal in the 89th minute tallying his second score of the season. This led to a scramble in the last 90 seconds to try and find a game-tying score, but the visitors were unable to find the chance.
Both squads went into the locker rooms scoreless, making the first goal pivotal for the potential outcome. The Red Raiders’ Jannes Keuhn broke the game open with a score in the 47th minute via Daniel Lindahl.
The quality shots went cold once more for the next 23 minutes, as only one shot on goal was had in the passed time. Drew Darnold gave Northwestern an insurance score with an assist by Gonzalo Domingo and Diego Quintero putting the Bulldogs down two late in the second frame.
Concordia tallied nine total shots with Ricards Busmeisters pacing the team, marking five total. Hugo Garrote followed with two. Veteran goalkeeper Nolan Fuelberth gathered one save.
The Red Raiders (5-1-1, 1-0 GPAC) led in corner kicks (7-2) and Darnold had a team-high four shots. Goalie Edoardo Alessandrini grabbed two saves in the win. Northwestern will travel to Forest City, Iowa, and compete against Waldorf on Wednesday.
Concordia (2-6, 0-1 GPAC) will have the midweek off before hosting Briar Cliff (3-3-1, 0-0-1 GPAC) in Seward. The first whistle is set for 1 p.m. CT next Saturday. The Bulldogs tied the Chargers but moved on in an electric penalty kick shootout (5-4) to the GPAC tournament semifinals in 2024.