Heat Takes Its Toll In Iowa

INDIANOLA, Iowa (9/6/15)—Concordia battled extreme heat and a pair of tough squads from the IIAC as they lost to Central 2-0 on Saturday and Simpson 2-1 on Sunday.

The Cobbers played both games in 90-degree heat after traveling over 500 miles. Concordia gave up a pair of goals in the first half on Saturday at Central and lost 2-0 and then had their 1-0 lead disappear when Simpson scored two goals in a span of 13:31 on Sunday. CC is now 0-3 on the season after playing three straight road games.

The game at Central on Saturday was a back-and-forth affair with the teams being separated by only one shot.

The Cobbers had the only two shots in the game before the Dutch changed the complexion of the game by netting two goals in 4:36 starting at the 25:29 mark. The first goal came off of a cross from the right wing while the second was a shot from the top of the penalty area on the left side of the field.

The Cobbers created quality chances in both periods but were unable to find their scoring touch from around the goal area.

Concordia goalie Alan Scheuermann was credited with one save in the game while Central goalie Josh Carpenter made four stops including a point-blank save in the first half.

The game against Simpson on Sunday was all about survival. Playing their second game in the heat in less than 24 hours, the Cobbers had to press through long stretches of play in their defensive end.

Concordia took the first lead of the game at the 38:30 mark when junior Sage Thornbrugh fired home a shot off of a dead ball from 20 yards out for his first goal of the year. The free kick came after freshman Spencer Lancaster stole the ball in the middle of the field and drove at the Storm defense and beat a pair of defenders before getting tripped up just outside the penalty area.

Concordia then pulled back to try and save their legs and protect the one-goal lead. CC was able to get out of the first half unscathed but then conceded the game-tying goal in the 66th minute when the ball got knocked back across the goal area several times.

The game winner came at 79:27 when Simpson converted on one of their 19 corner kicks in the game. The Storm player served the ball to the near post and an attacker beat the Cobber defense to the ball and headed it home into the net.

Ben Glogoza made six saves for Concordia. Simpson split the goalkeeping duties. Zach McEntee played the first half and wasn't credited with a save and then Austin Schafer made two saves in the second half to earn the win.

WHAT'S NEXT: Concordia will host their home opener on Friday, Sept. 11 when they square off against Carthage (Ill.) at 1 p.m. The Cobbers will then hit the road for a non-conference clash at St. Scholastica on Saturday, Sept. 12 at 4 p.m.