FAYETTE, Iowa – Davenport looked to complete the sweep in Iowa, but faced a tough Golden Bears team. Concordia St. Paul came into the game with a 2-0 record and hadn't given up a goal this season. The first half was high scoring with four total goals being scored, unfortunately three of them belonged to the Golden Bears. Davenport scored another goal to make things interesting in the second half, but the equalizer kept slipping out of their grasp.
 
THE BASICS
Final Score: Davenport-2 | Concordia St. Paul-3
Location: Fayette, Iowa
Records: Davenport 2-2 | Concordia St. Paul 3-0
 
SHOTS PER HALF (Shots on goal)
First Half: DU-5 | CSP-8
Second Half: DU-8 | CSP-4
Total: DU-13 (8) | CSP-12 (10)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The first half was not short on scoring plays, back and forth soccer, and plenty of saves. The Golden Bears got on the board first, scoring in the ninth minute of the game to take a 1-0 lead. Ashlyn Skidmore had the equalizer only a few minutes later. Skidmore earned a free kick after getting taken down by a trio of Concordia St. Paul defenders just outside the box in the center of the field. She lined up for the free kick and placed the shot to the left corner of the net and out of reach of the goalie, tying the game at 1-1. The Golden Bears scored again in the 17^th minute, taking a 2-1 advantage. Freshman keeper Samantha Beckles had a busy half in goal and had a great sequence with a little under 17 minutes to play in the half. She made a diving stop off a shot coming from the right side of the field, deflecting the ball towards the far post. A Golden Bears player gathered the rebound and fired a shot at the net, but Beckles quickly recovered and made another diving stop, her second diving save in a 10 second period. Later on in the half CSP scored their third goal of the game and Davenport fell behind by a score of 3-1 after completion of the first half.
 
Davenport had some pep to their step in the opening minutes of the second half. Freshman Alexa Dekam recorded two shots on goal and a shot by Imanie Richards barely missed the goal. Sarah Possett sent a free kick towards the back post and Richards got a piece of it, but the ball went over the net. Later in the half, Natalia Casiello riffled a shot from distance and scored her first collegiate goal, pulling the Panthers within one goal with just over 25 minutes left in regulation. The Golden Bears stepped up their defense down the stretch, only giving up one shot on goal to DU in the last 25 minutes of play. Davenport tried to score the equalizer and potentially force overtime, but the goal eluded the Panthers.
 
COACHES CORNER
"It was a tough loss today for the team and a good learning lesson that we will take into the rest of the season. We didn't start the game on the front foot, which hurt is the opening 45 minutes. But a lot of credit to the team for a great reaction after halftime and putting forth a much better performance in the second half. We know that there is a lot more growth to come as we move forth into the GLIAC." – Head Coach Paige Eli

PLAYER OF THE GAME
 
 
UP NEXT
The Panthers will return back to Michigan for their next contest, but remain on the road. Davenport travels to Ferris State on Friday, September 27 for a 4:00 pm game in Big Rapids.
 
Story by: Devin Steiner
 
Picture Credit: Emily Baustert