The Warsaw and Concord boys soccer teams found themselves meeting at the Tiger Soccer Complex Wednesday night in a battle of undefeated teams. The Tigers scored the game’s first goal, but the Minutemen had the last laugh, scoring three unanswered to win the game 3-1.
Much like the game last night, both teams were able to find successes in the opening minutes. Concord and Warsaw were each able to secure free kicks in the first five minutes of the game, but neither team was able to find the back of the net.
The early star of the game was the Tiger defense, as the back line for the home side did a great job to clear any danger away from goalie Finn Bailey, pushing back a surging Concord offense that was starting to find a rhythm. The Minutemen were beginning to control the game, but the Warsaw defense was stifling them enough to keep things scoreless.
Ten minutes into the game, the Tiger offense was able to formulate enough to earn the first corner kick of the game. It wouldn’t lead to anything, but it got the home side back in business on the Concord end of the field, giving Warsaw some more chances to make something happen.
It paid off a few minutes later. After a grabbed jersey led to a free kick 10 feet outside of the box for the Tigers, Callen O’Brien stepped in to take it. The senior didn’t need much room to make the Minutemen pay, finding the bottom right corner of the net and burying his shot into the twine to give his team a 1-0 lead.
The advantage didn’t last long for the home side, as Concord responded well after giving up the opener. The visitors were able to string together a flurry of chances over the next few minutes that culminated in a penalty kick after a trip in the box. Junior Jose Quintanilla stepped up to the spot and put in a shot in the exact same spot O’Brien did two minutes earlier to tie things up.

    Warsaw senior goalie Fin Bailey makes a diving save during Wednesday evening's home match against Concord...Nieter

The Minutemen did well to control the game after tying things up, coming close to taking their first lead of the contest multiple times afterwards, but Bailey was there each time to stop the attack in its tracks.
Finally, with eleven minutes left in the first half, the Tigers were able to show more life offensively, with a fantastic run by Mydin Burgher almost leading to O’Brien’s second of the game. His shot on the pass back to him just inside the box was stopped on a miraculous one-handed save by Minutemen goalie Rafa Sabas.
The chance was enough for Warsaw to get some momentum back, and the home side was able to finish the first half much better than the last ten minutes had gone. No more goals would be scored though, and the two teams remained tied at 1-1 headed into the half.
They didn’t stay tied for long. Just 30 seconds into the second half, Concord’s Jimy Gomez-Gonzalez broke the tie on a bicycle kick after a prolonged period in the Warsaw box, giving the Minutemen their first lead of the game.
Much like in the first half, the visitors took all of the momentum in the game after scoring, spending the next stretch of the contest coming close to doubling their lead numerous times. Warsaw was fighting for its life to prevent another score to stay in the game.
Time continued to wind down with no offense being generated for the Tigers. The defense had settled in and was preventing Concord from getting anything else, but the chances to even things up were few and far between.
The Tigers were able to pick up some chances due to the sloppiness of the visitors, as Concord picked up four yellow cards in the first 20 minutes of the second half. The third and fourth cards led to a free kick and a corner, but Warsaw was unable to do anything with them.
The home side continued to push as soon there was just 10 minutes remaining in the game. The Tiger shots became more and more frequent as the team continued searching for an equalizer.
Then, disaster struck. With just under 10 minutes left in the game, Concord was able to launch a counterattack after another Warsaw chance went by the wayside. Nathan Potter attempted a long shot on goal, and with an untimely deflection, found its way into the back of the net. The Tigers now needed two goals in less than 10 minutes to level the score.
With four minutes left in the game, O’Brien had the Tigers’ best chance of the second half, sending a free kick just over the crossbar to almost add to his goal total once more. Another goal did not materialize, giving the home side their first loss of the season.
Warsaw (4-1-1) plays its next game Saturday at home against Penn.