Glendale, Ariz.- In what felt similar to a chess match, the Firestorm countered the visiting Oregon Tech Owls just enough to pull out their second consecutive 2-1 win. With the game knotted at 1-1, midfielder Jose Garcia capitalized on a free kick from 25 yards away, and ACU surged ahead with only 73 seconds remaining. The latest tally in the win column not only moves the Firestorm into second place in the GSAC standings, but is Coach Ted Krzywiecki's 25th win as the head coach.

Score: Arizona Christian 2, Oregon Tech 1
Records:  Arizona Christian 4-1-0 (0-0-0) | Oregon Tech 1-1-1 (0-0-0)
Location: ACU Football Field - Glendale, AZ

STAT TRACKER

Marlon Arce - 1 goal, 5 shots on goal 
Jose Garcia - 1 goal, 2 shots
Aiden Abbitt - 1 assist, 2 shots
Cristhian Flores - 1 shot on goal
Carlos Gallardo - 6 saves

INSIDE THE BOXSCORE

While ACU's Marlon Arce recorded the first shot on goal in the contest, the Oregon Tech Owls controlled the early tempo and were surgical in their procedure. OIT patiently went through their progressions and pressured the Firestorm back line and goalkeeper Carlos Gallardo for the first 10 minutes, managing two headers and two shots. 

After absorbing the blows, the Firestorm made their own charge. In a 17-second sequence, Aiden Abbitt and Arce fired off three shots, but OIT's goalkeeper Ryan Solis stood his ground and denied the push from ACU. With possession soon after, Arce used a slight hesitation and burst of speed to outrun an Owl defender before handing it off to Abbitt. A quick pass back to Arce left an open lane for him to work, and he punched the ball past Solis to give the Firestorm a 1-0 lead. The goal came as Arce's third on the year and Abbitt's second assist.

A few ticks over 16 minutes remained in the opening half for the Owls to respond. OIT tightened up their attack and once again possessed the ball for extended periods. This time it paid off, as Ryan Pearson heaved a throw-in to Cooper Hunt, who headed the perfectly placed ball into the back of the net. With only four seconds left in the first period, the Firestorm found themselves deadlocked.

The Owls spent five of their nine second half shots in the opening 11 minutes, for Gallardo would not be outdone. After OIT's initial scoring threats, the Firestorm were able to match them step for step and develop a few opportunities of their own. 

ACU was the beneficiary of several late fouls on the Owls, generating some momentum. The Firestorm back line and Gallardo fought off two on-target shots from the Owls, keeping the possibility of a win alive. The final foul turned out to be the most critical, as a yellow card on OIT's Tidus Paet-Vegas set up Jose Garcia with a 25-yard free kick. Solis appeared to get both hands on Garcia's strike, but could not finish the save and conceded the go-ahead score. Preventing defense proved to be enough, as ACU clutched onto a 2-1 victory.

THOUGHTS FROM COACH TED KRZYWIECKI

"I'm proud of our guys today for staying in the fight against a good team," Coach Krzywiecki said. "We had massive breakthrough performances from a few guys including Logan Johnson in the midfield and a bit of magic at the end to give us a chance by Jose Garcia… Carlos Gallardo kept us alive with some key saves and moments to break up their attacks and I thought our back line did well to break up their attacks. It was a total team effort tonight to find a way to get a result against a quality opponent. We need to recover and get ready for a very difficult trip to Oklahoma next week."

NEXT MATCH

The Firestorm earn some time off with their latest win before heading to Oklahoma for two road matches. ACU's first road trip of the season begins on Thursday, September 14th with #2-ranked Mid-America Christian at 5:30 PM MST. Follow the action with live stats at https://acufirestorm.com/sidearmstats/msoc/summary and watch the game at https://sacsportsnetwork.com/macuevangels/?B=600379.    


Roll Storm!