A late first half strike wasn’t enough for the No. 9 Barton Community College men’s soccer team Wednesday night on the road, as No. 4 Cowley College answered with two second half goals to claim a 2-1 victory in the showdown of top-10 teams in Arkansas City.
The result drops the Cougars at 2-2-0 in conference play and 5-3-1 overall while the Tigers remain unbeaten at 3-0-0 in the Jayhawk and 5-0-0 on the year. Barton will look to halt a two-match skid on Friday with an 11:00 a.m. kickoff against No. 14 Otero College at Garden City’s Broncbuster Stadium before returning home Saturday for a 1:00 p.m. match against Coffeyville at Cavanaugh Field in Great Bend.
Barton struck first just before the half as Gabriel Henrique‘s long ball drew the Cowley keeper off his line. A deflection inside the box sent the ball trickling back toward goal, where Rafael Calmon‘s pressure helped it trickle into the open net.
The Tigers responded almost immediately after the break, leveling the match just 49 seconds into the second frame. Kanta Ishii’s midfield free kick found the head of Omar Ocampos inside the box to make it 1-1.
The match turned in the 73rd minute on a 25-yard free kick by Yushin Nakano that caught the Cougars still organizing its defensive wall. Without a restart whistle, Nakano slotted his strike into the unguarded net for the game-winner.
Barton generated eight total shots with three towards frame, led by looks from Diogo Gimenez and Masaki Tsuji. Gabriel Bergamin made two saves in goal, while his opposition Lukas Lowry stopped a pair at the other end.
BARTON SCORING SUMMARY
43:11: Rafael Calmon (4); Assist: Gabriel Henrique (1)
