CLAREMORE, Okla. – The Rogers State men's soccer team had its opportunities, but couldn't convert in a 2-0 loss to Ouachita Baptist on Saturday (Sept. 1) afternoon at Soldier Field. The loss is the first this season for RSU as they fell to 1-1 on the season.
 
Despite outshooting the Tigers 22-10, the Hillcats (1-1-0) couldn't tally a goal in the shutout loss. OBU's goalkeeper Matt Gutierrez made some big saves to keep the navy and red scoreless. For the game, he finished with six saves, including a few diving stops.
 
The Tigers (1-0-1) went up 1-0 early in the ninth minute of the game when Abraham Lazo scored his first career goal on a shot from the right side of the box to the far post. OBU doubled the lead in the second half when the Tigers took advantage of a three-on-three counterattack to score with Colten Clark netting the tally.
 
After a back-and-forth first half, RSU dominated play in the second half with a 15-5 advantage in shots. The Cats had numerous chances, especially on their 13 corner kicks, but couldn't capitalize on the opportunities.
 
Chris Sowder, who tallied two goals in the season-opening win over Drury on Thursday, posted a game-high five shots. Striker Jake Simpson and defender Michael Turner each added four shots.
 
Dillon Dean started in goal for the navy and red and made two saves in the 90 minutes. He picked up the loss for the first time in his career to drop to 1-1 on the season.
 
The loss ended a four-game winning streak against OBU for the Hillcats as RSU leads the all-time series 4-1.
 
The Hillcats play three straight nationally-ranked teams starting with No. 17-ranked Northeastern State on Thursday (Sept. 6) at 7 p.m. in Tahlequah, Okla.