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Morris, Minn. – In the marquee match-up of the weekend, the Minnesota Morris men's soccer team squared off with rival St. Scholastica at Cougar Field today (Sept. 23). It was an exciting game for the fans, but an unwanted result, as the Cougars fell 1-0 on a lone second half Saint goal.

It was a standard Cougar-Saint match-up on the pitch, fast-paced, physical, goals at a premium, and highly intense. If you didn't see the score and just watched the pace of the game, you'd be wise to think the Cougars had won.

Morris (3-3-2, 2-1-0 UMAC) took the first seven shots of the game, on their way to a 15-to-6 advantage on the day. St. Scholastica (7-1-0, 4-0-0 UMAC) could only manage three shots in either half, with just one shot on goal. The shot total was the third highest of the season for the Cougars, and the most allowed by the Saints this season. The Cougars have not been outshot in their last three matches.

The Saints made their one on goal count though, as Brandon Stemwedel got behind the defense at the 60:49 mark for his fourth goal of the season. One of the rare times the Saints had the ball deep in Cougar territory, the ball was ricocheting between the CSS offenders and the UMM backline, before bouncing out to Stemwedel on the right.

The score was a back-breaker for the Cougars, and was made worse by the fact that just minutes earlier, they had their best chance to take the first lead of the game. Out wide on the left, Ebrima Badgie (Banjul, The Gambia) took a beautiful touch on a cross-field pass, and fired off a rocket that Saint goalkeeper Sam Reed had to lay out to stop.

With Reed on the ground, Matt Johnson (Monument, Colo.) was then in perfect position to bang in the rebound. He leapt into the air for a header, facing a wide open meet, but before the ball could cross the line, Reed had recovered to stop the attempt.

The Cougars kept the pressure on in the second, out-shooting the Saints 6-to-3 in the period, but were unable to tie the match, despite possessing the ball for much of the final 45 minutes.

Toby Glaser (Colorado Springs, Colo.) led the way with a game-high five shots, but just one on goal. The Cougars finished with five shots on goal in the match, coming from five different players.

Included were Johnson and Badgie, who each also had two total shots on the day.

Goalkeeper Tyler Weber (Erie, Colo.) saw his scoreless streak end at a season-long 310:44, but still has yet to allow multiple goals in a game since the season opener.

The Cougars drop their third straight to the Saints, after tying in Duluth in their first meeting last season. Morris has not beaten St. Scholastica since a 1-0 victory on Oct. 3, 2009.

The Cougars must now regroup on short notice, as they return to action on Sept. 25, after a day off tomorrow. At 12:00 p.m. on Sunday, they host Northland in UMAC action.