Buckhannon, W. Va. – After opening their season on the road in conference play, the Wheeling University Men's Soccer team (0-2, 0-2) went back out on the road Wednesday night to take on West Virginia Wesleyan. The Cardinals fell behind early, but battled back to get on the board in the 73rd minute, but it wasn't enough as they fell to the Bobcats 2-1. Jon-Michael Gordon scored the first goal of his career in the loss as the Cardinals continue to grow on the field.

After not getting off a single shot in the first half, the Cardinals gained the advantage early in the second half. Christian Ruud took the team's first shot of the game in the 50th minute, but a diving save was able to keep the Cardinals off the board. After a pair of Bobcats shots went wide of the mark, the Cardinals were back on the offensive in the 67th minute. Wheeling attempted a corner kick in the 70th minute and, after not converting subbed Gordon into the game. Gordon would immediately take advantage of his opportunity, bringing the ball up the middle of the field. He made a move around his defender And put his shot in the bottom left corner of the net to tie the game at 1-1. It was the first goal of Gordon's collegiate career, and tied the game with 17 minutes left in regulation.

However, the tie game wouldn't last long as just tw minutes later the Bobcats retook the lead. Casey Bunker got West Virginia Wesleyan back on the board and the Bobcats led 2-1 with 15 minutes to play. Gordon followed with a wide shot of his own, and it wasn't until the final minute of play that Wheeling nearly walked away with a tie. As the one minute mark ticked away, TJ Cherry had an opportunity in front of the net and sent a shot flying towards the bottom right corner of the net. West Virginia Wesleyan's Logan Nelson dove to make the save and keep it a one-goal lead. The Cardinals had two corner kicks during that final minute, but neither came to fruition as Wheeling fell 2-1, dropping to 0-2 in MEC play to start the season.

Prior to the second half scoring by both teams, neither offense was able to get much going in the first half. The Cardinals were outshot 5-0 over the first 45 minutes of play, but of those five Bobcats shots, only one landed on net. The two teams battled back and forth over the first 30 minutes of play, with neither team getting off a shot during that time. It wasn't until the 33rd minute that the first shot was taken, with the Bobcats' Casey Bunker shooting one wide right. Carlos Molina got the start in the game, and only faced one shot on goal during that first half. However, that shot would come in the final minute of the first half when West Virginia Wesleyan's Asier Fernandez de la Reguera put the Bobcats on the board and sent the teams in the locker room with the score sitting at 1-0. Despite the second half battle back, it wasn't enough for the Cardinals to come away with the win.

Jon-Michael Gordon led the Cardinals on the day with his first collegiate goal, while taking two shots, one on goal. TJ Cherry finished right behind him with two shots, one on goal, while Christian Ruud added a shot on goal of his own in the effort. Carlos Molina got the start in net and did not make a save on three shots faced. The Cardinals now get set for their home opener on Saturday as they kick-off a stretch of three straight games on their home field. The first two will both be non-conference action as the Cardinals look to regroup and get back on track before returning to MEC play.

The Wheeling University Men's Soccer team returns to action on Saturday, September 9th, when they host Findlay with kick-off at 6 PM.