JAMESTOWN, N.D. – In a rematch of the GPAC tournament championship game played this past spring, the Concordia University Women’s Soccer team gave a strong account of itself. The Bulldogs were unable to duplicate the 2-1 triumph they celebrated back on April 9, but they went toe-to-toe with undefeated Jamestown on a soggy Saturday (Oct. 9) evening in North Dakota. Cassandra Diaz’s goal in the 46th minute proved the difference in a 1-0 decision.
It was a solid week for Head Coach Thomas Goines’ squad, which earned a 2-1 overtime victory over Morningside on Wednesday. Concordia now stands at 6-4-2 overall and at 3-2-2 within the GPAC.
“It was a competitive game,” Goines said. “Jamestown is very fast, physical and very direct and technical. They challenge you at almost every level of the field. I was very happy with our effort today. It wasn’t a pretty game where you connect a lot of passes. It was about putting in the effort and fighting for 90 minutes. Rocket (Kalie Ward) came up big with a couple saves in the run of play. We had to make some adjustments with players who got injured. All the girls who stepped in were able to play well.”
The aforementioned goal was aided by a deflection off of a Bulldog defenders’ foot. It made for a difficult reaction for Ward in goal. Diaz (11 goals on the season) celebrated the goal in the 46th minute. There was no margin for error on a night when Concordia was held without a shot in the second half. Jamestown finished with advantages of 11-4 in shots (6-3 in shots on goal) and 5-1 in corner kicks. Ward came through five saves in her 90 minutes.
Aliyah Aldama, Ellie Eason and Bethany Fuchs were credited with one shot on goal apiece. Jimmie keeper Alex Nowka made three saves while recording the clean sheet. This marked Jamestown’s second shutout within conference play.
On the other hand, the Jimmies (12-0, 7-0 GPAC) had tallied at least two goals in each of their prior six GPAC games. Jamestown has not lost since last season’s GPAC title game and was situated just outside of the NAIA top 25 in the latest poll.
Said Goines, “You can’t take away negatives from this week at all. It would have been great to come out with a tie or win tonight. We knew this was a challenging week. I was very happy with the girls’ resolve and ability to play against some of the best in the GPAC and get results. We really fought this past week.”
The Bulldogs will return to action on Wednesday by hosting College of Saint Mary (6-5-1, 4-2 GPAC), another team sitting near the top of the league standings. Kickoff from Bulldog Stadium is set for 7 p.m. CT. In last season’s meeting in Omaha, Concordia won, 1-0, in overtime via the golden goal delivered by Cheyenne Smith.