BOURBONNAIS, Ill. - The 2019 season for the University of St. Francis men's soccer came to an end this Thursday (Nov. 14) as the Saints dropped a 1-0 decision to Olivet Nazarene in the semifinal round of the 2019 Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference (CCAC) Tournament match played at ONU's Ward Field.
 

 Neither team was able to get on the scoreboard most of the opening half until Olivet Nazarene's Justin Fritz broke the scoreless deadlock with the only goal of the contest which occurred at the 42:17 mark. Fritz's unassisted tally came on shot near the 18-yard line off a won ball which eluded USF goalkeeper Carlos Ferrer Coto (JR/La Fresneda, Spain). 
 

USF's defense and a solid performance by Coto, who recorded 11 saves in the match with eight of those coming in the second half, kept the Saints within striking distance of tying the game. 
 

In the final minutes of the contest, Coto came up some a couple of key stops. The first coming at 3:37 as the USF netminder made the save on a penalty kick by ONU's Thomas Barboza. Then 27 seconds later, Coto stopped on a shot on the USF goal by Edgar Pani off a Tigers' corner kick.
 

The Saints' final opportunity to tally the equalizer would come with 2:45 remaining in the match on a shot by forward Kevin Sanchez (SR/Malden, Ill.) which sailed high above the ONU goal.  
 

Coto's play overshadowed a shutout win by Olivet Nazarene goalkeeper Britten Wolff, who stopped all five of the USF shots faced on goal in a complete-match performance.
 

For the match, ONU outshot the Saints 23-9 and committed 21 fouls to the Tigers' four. In corner kicks, ONU posted a 5-4 edge for the contest as USF accounted for three of its four team total in the first 45 minutes of play. The Saints were whistled for four offsides and Olivet Nazarene was called on three occasions.
 

Sanchez led USF with two shots, which included one on goal. Midfielder Sergio Peres (JR/Goiania, Brazil), forward Reuel Erastus-Obilo (SR/Potters Bar, England), defender Brian Castillo (JR/Joliet, Ill.), and midfielder Stefan Jakovljevic (JR/Bregenz, Austria) also registered a shot on goal for the Saints. All of USF's shots on the ONU net would occur in the opening half.
 

The Saints finish the season at 9-6-5 overall and were 6-4-2 in the CCAC. USF advanced to the semifinal round with a 5-4 shootout win at Roosevelt last Saturday (Nov. 9) after both teams played to a 1-1 double-overtime tie.