SALEM, Ore. – Regardless of the dominant control and possession that the Corban University Men's Soccer team held through much of their Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) opener earlier tonight, the Warriors walked away on the wrong side of a 1-0 result against the University of Providence at the Outdoor Athletic Complex. The Warriors outshot the Argos 18-4 and held Providence without a corner kick opportunity, yet a second-half goal proved to be the difference as Corban fell to 3-1-0 overall and 0-1-0 in CCC play, while UP picked up their first victory of the year.
"I'm very disappointed with tonight's result," expressed Warriors' head coach Jordan Keegan following his first career loss. "Sometimes, the game just doesn't go your way, and unfortunately that was the case tonight. We're going to regroup and come out strong against some good teams next week."
Corban dictated possession and created plenty of scoring chances throughout the evening, as the Warriors fired nine shots in the opening half while limiting Providence to a single attempt, forcing goalkeeper Teddy Benbow into a pair of saves and generating several dangerous opportunities in and around the box. Despite controlling the pace of play and earning the match's lone first-half corner kick, the Navy and Gold entered the halftime break locked in a scoreless draw.
The Warriors continued to apply pressure after the restart, earning six second-half corner kicks and repeatedly testing the Argos' defense. Opportunities from freshman forward Antonio Virrueta and freshman defender Oswaldo Cerda Pacheco threatened to break the deadlock, but Benbow and the Providence back line managed to keep Corban off the scoreboard.
After weathering sustained Warrior pressure, Providence capitalized on one of its few opportunities in the 75th minute. Geovanni Lugo found Lucas Morais, who finished the match's lone goal to give the visitors a 1-0 advantage. The Navy and Gold immediately pushed numbers forward in search of an equalizer, creating additional chances and earning late corner kicks, but the Argos held on through the final whistle.
Offensively, junior forward Zachary Milczarek and junior midfielder Christ Ramirez paced the Warriors with four shots apiece, while Virrueta added three attempts. Junior forward Jesus Mendoza recorded two shots on target, and Cerda Pacheco generated Corban's best aerial opportunity with a second-half header that forced a save. As a team, the Warriors finished with an 18-4 advantage in total shots and a 7-0 edge in corner kicks, controlling the statistical categories despite being unable to find the back of the net.
Defensively, redshirt sophomore goalkeeper Rylan Davidson recorded three saves and helped limit Providence to just four shots throughout the contest. Providence converted on one of its four total attempts, however, handing Davidson and the Warriors their first defeat of the season.
For the Argos, goalkeeper Teddy Benbow recorded four saves in the shutout victory, while Lucas Morais scored the match's lone goal off an assist from Geovanni Lugo. Providence converted on one of their four total shots to secure the conference road win.
The Warriors will have little time to dwell on the result as conference play continues next weekend back on their home pitch. Corban will look to bounce back on Friday night when the Navy and Gold host RV Eastern Oregon University (0-1-2, 0-0-0) at the Outdoor Athletic Complex with a 7pm kickoff, aiming to turn another strong all-around performance into three points in the CCC standings.
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