Tyler Camps scored second game-winner of the season inside the last minute of play against the Eagles on Friday.
CU's Tyler Camp Connects for Game-Winner vs. NU
BEAVERTON, Ore. – Peppering the Eagles with 14 second-half shots, it took until the final minute to score the game-winner as Concordia defeated Northwest University 2-1 in men’s soccer action at the Tualatin Hills Park and Recreation Center on Friday.
With the result, Concordia improved to 6-4-1 on the season with a 3-1-0 mark in Cascade Collegiate Conference play. Northwest dropped to 3-4-1 overall and 2-3-0 in league action.
Senior forward Joey Graham got the Cavs on the board first with a 29th-minute score after receiving the ball from teammate Skyler Kimbal from the left side of the field. Graham turned with a short header which slipped by NU keeper Kyle Wall.
"We kept a seal on the defensive end other than a few breakaways,” Concordia head coach Dan Birkey said. “JoJo (Graham) gave us an opening goal that lifted the spirits.”
The Concordia defense would hold up for the remainder of the half, but the Eagles would break through in the 53rd minute with action on the right wing. Countering after back-and-forth action from both offenses, Northwest’s Drew Jenson fired the ball into the box where Luke Fischer managed to get a leg on the ball for a close-strike score, evening the battle at 1-1.
The Cavs managed several barrages on the opposing goal, including dangerous attacks by Ryan Hill, Facundo Dipascuale and Jon Larsen, but would not find the difference maker until 18 seconds remained as a well-placed ball from David Proud allowed Tyler Camp space to fire from long range, sending the Cavalier bench into instant celebration.
The cheers would be quickly squelched as Northwest nearly took the ball the length of the field for the equalizer with Matt Johnson’s one-versus-one attempt with eight seconds remaining was recovered by CU goalie Garrett Staples.
“When Northwest scrapped out a goal we kept the foot on the pedal offensively and never came unwrapped. There were numerous good opportunities to break the game open but it never came for us,” Birkey said. “The build up was there but didn’t get a final quality until Campy laced a beauty. It was a fantastic game and fantastic for the team."
Concordia outshot the Eagles 21-to-9 in the contest, including a 14-4 edge in the second period. The Cavaliers also created 14 corner kick opportunities compared to just one for Northwest. Staples stopped five shots to earn the win while Wall rejected six shots while allowing the two goals in the losing effort.
Concordia returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Evergreen State at 7:30 p.m. in Beaverton.