WAUKESHA, Wis. - Chad Peterson seized the moment.
Peterson, a 5-foot-9 junior forward from Mukwonago, Wis., scored what proved to be the winning goal on a 23-yard free kick at the 16:25 mark as the Carroll University men's soccer team defeated Concordia University Wisconsin 2-0 in a spirited, physical nonconference game at Schneider Stadium on Wednesday night.
It was an emotional first victory and first shutout of the season for Carroll, which celebrated in front of the hometown fans by improving to 1-4-1 overall.
On the game-winner in the 16th minute, Peterson quickly surveyed the field from the left side, charged toward the ball and fired a hard, high-arcing shot toward the middle.
Moments later, the perfectly placed ball flew above the outstretched arms of the goalkeeper and into the back corner of the net.
"It was one of those moments where I knew the ball was going in the minute it hit my foot," said a smiling Peterson, of his first goal of the season. "Following the foul, it couldn't have been placed in a better spot on the field so I just attempted to line it up and place the shot exactly where it needed to be. I've practiced that shot for a long time so to see the ball hit the back of the net was an amazing feeling.
"To get a victory like this against a tough team like Concordia should only lead to good things down the line. From start to finish, we played with passion, fought through the fatigue and pushed hard to make it happen. Looking back, it was truly a team effort in every sense."
Sophomore defender Peanut Taylor (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) followed with an explosive, high-lining 29-yard goal from the right side in the 67th minute for the Pioneers, who prevailed despite being outshot 16-6 - including a 9-3 shot-on-goal margin.
"It was great to come away with a victory on our home field," said Taylor, who has contributed two goals and an assist this season. "Having been in a slump as of late, we really came out with the mindset of focusing on the next challenge and building off of the experience. Being able to come away with a shutout, it should serve as good motivation and help set the tone for the games to come. Tonight, we just played with pride each step of the way.
"On my goal, I saw the defender come out a little bit and just attempted to get a good hit on the ball. At that point, it was all about trying to keep it on target and going from there. It was great to be able to make the most of the opportunity."
Junior goalkeeper Connor Thompson (Kent, Wash.) registered nine saves to preserve a shutout for the Pioneers.
Thompson was a stabilizing force throughout the fierce battle, contributing three consecutive saves over the course of the final four minutes of the pivotal first half.
Carroll head coach Rick Mobley was pleased with his team's ability to focus, maintain its intensity and demonstrate its heart.
"I was very happy about how we responded to the challenge," said Mobley, following his team's inspired performance. "Faced with a brutal schedule and some unfortunate results so far this season, the situation could've gone one of two ways. We had the choice of either tanking the rest of the year with another loss tonight or fighting hard through the situation and grinding out a victory. Fortunately, when it all came right down to it, we stepped up and demonstrated our true character. I was very proud of the effort.
"From beginning to end, we were tenacious, intense and played together. It was just great to see the guys maintain that aggressiveness throughout the night and see it through to the end."
Concordia dropped to 1-2-2 overall.