PORTLAND, Ore. – Two goals in the final 12 minutes by Concordia University erased a 2-1 lead for the Montana State University Billings men's soccer team Thursday afternoon at Tuominen Yard, as the host Cavaliers claimed a 3-2 Great Northwest Athletic Conference victory.
 
Eli Williams scored less than two minutes after halftime to pull the score even at 1-1, and Guillaume Kremer added his team-high sixth goal of the year in the 78th minute to give the 'Jackets the lead. But the Cavaliers responded and picked up their first-ever win over MSUB, netting the final two goals in a hectic finish.
 
"We are not giving up," said MSUB head coach Alex Balog. "We took another one on the chin this afternoon, but we are going to play our last five games to win. It was good to see how we bounced back from being down 1-0 and turning it into a 2-1 lead. However, defensively we are very vulnerable at the moment. We are extremely disappointed to have given the game away, but Concordia deserves a lot of credit for not giving up that late in the game and for finding a way to win."
 
Conrad Gooley had the equalizer in the 79th minute, and Kieran McMinn delivered the game-winner just six minutes later after Nick Evans scored the opening goal of the match in the 24th minute. CU improved to  4-7-2 overall and 3-4-1 in league play, while MSUB fell to 5-9 and 3-5 in conference action.
 
MSUB carried the early momentum, with three shots including two on target in the opening 12 minutes of play.
 
Realf Zhivanaj made a critical sliding tackle 16 minutes into the match, breaking up what would have materialized into an excellent scoring chance for the 'Cavs by winning the ball in a 3-on-2 situation just outside the box. Zhivanaj played the full 90 minutes for the 'Jackets, along with fellow defender Oliver Posarelli. 

A through ball by Matthew Cunningham led to the opening goal in the match, as the perfectly-weighted pass was touched softly one time by Evans and into the back of the net from inside the box.
 
Two minutes later, the 'Jackets won a free kick from 25 yards away on the left side of the field. Kremer lined up a sharp cross into the box that was deflected away, but it took a diving save by Benoit Bouillant on a low

shot by Shantik Bedrosian to keep the match scoreless. Benoit finished the game with four saves for the 'Cavs.
 
The 'Jackets squandered a chance to equalize with 15 minutes to go before halftime, as Niklas Schregel pushed a close-range shot high after a long free kick from midfield into the goal box.
 
MSUB goalkeeper Tom Lohmann had a spectacular save with 9:30 to go before the break, in another breakaway situation inside his goal box. The senior raced forward and dove to his left to deny Evans what would have been his second goal of the game.
 
It took just two minutes for MSUB to pull even in the second half, as Luca Battistotti played a perfect cross to Williams from the right side of the field. The senior nodded home his third goal of the year to make the score 1-1, as momentum began to shift into MSUB's favor.
 
Dana Kowachek drilled a strong shot just over the crossbar on a nice leave by Bedrosian, narrowly missing giving the 'Jackets the lead 15 minutes into the second.
 
A foul by the 'Jackets created a dangerous free-kick chance for CU midway through the half, but a shot by Cunningham missed over the bar after the 'Cavs elected to play a short free kick.
 
Bouillant's best save of the game came with 20 minutes to go, when Kremer delivered a picture-perfect shot towards the upper-corner of the net on a 25-yard free kick. The CU goalkeeper laid out to his right to deflect the on-target shot out for a corner kick.
 
With 12 minutes to go in the match, the 'Jackets won a penalty kick after a hand ball in the box. Kremer drilled an unstoppable shot into the upper corner of the net, giving the 'Jackets a 2-1 advantage. It didn't last for long however, as Gooley headed home his first goal of the year on a cross by McMinn just a minute later.
 
A late tackle by the 'Jackets with 7:30 to play resulted in a red card, but the 'Cavs couldn't capitalize on a free kick from 22 yards away as the score remained even. Taking the lead just two minutes later however, McMinn punched in a goal from five yards away after a long free-kick service by Sanders.
 
CU held a 15-13 advantage in shots in the game, but the 'Jackets won the only two corner kicks of the evening.
 
THE BUZZ: Bedrosian was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Game…MSUB is 3-1-2 all-time against Concordia, and is 0-1-2 in games played in Portland…Thursday marked the fifth consecutive match between the teams in which Concordia scored the first goal, but the first time the 'Cavs won…Lohmann is now four saves away from the MSUB school record of 196...the assist was the third of the season for Battistotti.
 
AHEAD: The 'Jackets face Seattle Pacific University on Saturday with a 5:30 p.m. Mountain time kickoff scheduled at Interbay Stadium. Live video and live statistics will be available online through MSUB's Stretch Internet portal here.