CREVE COEUR, Mo. — Owls men's soccer (4-5-1, 2-4-1 Heart) closed out the second half of the conference doubleheader with a 4-2 loss to Missouri Baptist (5-3-3, 3-3-1 Heart). The Spartans established an early lead and maintained the advantage through the final whistle.
It took 36 minutes for either team to break the scoreless deadlock, as Missouri Baptist's Ivan Vodanovich found the back of the net. The Spartans doubled their lead just eight seconds before halftime, with Nate Boos scoring the second goal of the contest.
Trailing 2-0, Woods looked to claw its way back into the match after the break. Despite increased pressure from the Owls, Missouri Baptist added a third goal just 48 seconds into the second half.
Woods responded with a pair of goals in the middle stages of the second half. Francesco Dibra fired a shot into the net off an assist from Travis Luhning in the 65th minute to cut the deficit to two. Twelve minutes later, Britton Purewal brought the Owls within one, finishing a pass from Dibra inside the box.
With momentum building and the deficit trimmed to one, Woods had an opportunity to level the match. However, Missouri Baptist midfielder Eroy Gonsalves found the back of the net in the 78th minute, securing the Spartans' 4-2 conference victory.
The Owls recorded 17 shots, putting four on target. Goalkeeper Pedro Kassem Silva collected five saves in the contest.
Woods returns to action this weekend with a matchup against William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa.
