LA GRANDE, Ore. – It took all ninety minutes of regulation plus numerous stoppages down the stretch of a gutty performance for the Corban University Men's Soccer team tonight in La Grande, as the Warriors' defense stepped up and prevented the RV Mountaineers of Eastern Oregon University from scoring on their home field to snap their four-game win-streak and hand them only their third non-win of the season via their scoreless draw. The Mountie offense was relentless in their pursuit of a goal after hanging three scoring plays on Corban's travel partner Bushnell University last night yet redshirt senior goalkeeper Isaac Pureco and his backline kept EOU guessing from the opening kickoff to the postgame fireworks. Warriors' head coach Tim Kagey shared, "The boys showed lots of heart tonight. We competed today and we are excited for our upcoming homestand."
A tireless brigade of shots from Eastern Oregon (6-0-3, 3-0-1) all fell flat thanks to Pureco and the Warriors (2-6-1, 0-2-1), who snapped a two-game losing streak to start Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) play. The Mountaineers rattled off 19 total shots compared to just one for the Navy and Gold, while taking ten times more corner kick opportunities and having four more free kicks following a 15-11 advantage in fouls committed. However, EOU proved to be the eagerly aggressive squad tonight, as they were presented with three yellow cards and a postgame red, compared to just a pair of yellows for Corban.
Pureco hauled in six saves across his complete game shutout, with redshirt sophomore defender Aaron James involved in nearly every offensive possession for the Mounties during his fulltime efforts. Sophomore defender Alexander Guindy and redshirt senior defender Noah Gatchet each turned in complete game defensive efforts as well. EOU forward Marcos Braco and midfielder Anthony Macedo each took three shots to lead either team in offensive opportunities, but were unable to locate the back of the net in Pureco's fourth career shutout.
The Warriors will ride the momentum of their road shutout this evening into a two-week homestand that begins next Friday at the Outdoor Athletic Complex, as they'll look to avenge their 3-1 non-conference defeat to Warner Pacific University (5-2-0, 1-1-0) at 7pm on their home turf.
Follow Corban Athletics:
Facebook l Twitter (X) l Instagram l YouTube l Email
