PARKVILLE, Mo. — Woods men's soccer (3-4, 1-3 Heart) continued the trek through the middle of their Heart of America Athletic Conference schedule on Wednesday night with a matchup at Park University (5-1, 3-1 Heart). The Owls conceded two goals in quick succession around the 24-minute mark and were unable to claw their way back into the match, eventually falling three-to-nil.
Both teams traded shots-on-goal in the early minutes, but both keepers were able to stifle the scoring threat. The Pirates found the go-ahead goal late in the 23rd minute when Colten Parsons hammered home is fourth goal of the season. Just one and a half minutes later, the Pirate attack once again snuck one past the keeper. This time it was Dejan Zielinski that netted the scoring chance, off a pass inside the box by Ruben Kuevi.
Woods put multiple shots on frame in the closing minutes of the half but were unable to convert. Travis Luhning leaped over the defense for a header attempt, but it fell into the hands of the Pirate goalkeeper. The Owls were awarded a corner kick in the 43rd minute, but the Park back line held strong and cleared the ball away before The Woods could pick out their target.
Park scored the last goal of the contest not too long after the intermission. In the 49th minute Pedro Tonelli Bernardes leveraged a corner kick to Marcos Fernandes, who dished it over his shoulder to Michael Xavier Bauer's left foot and into the back of the net.
The Owls had multiple chances to score in the second half but were turned away by impeccable defense from the Pirates. In total, Woods barreled seven shots at the keeper in the second half and were turned away each time.
Between the posts, Pedro Kassem Silva reeled in four saves.
Woods returns to the pitch this weekend with a homecoming matchup against Graceland University. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. at the North Campus Athletic Complex.
