Box Score

NAMPA, Idaho – One perfect kick added to the frustration.

The Great Northwest Athletic Conference's leading goal scorer, Jovan Blagojevic, launched a 40-yard ball toward the Crusader goal, a perfect kick that just sailed over the outstretched arms of a leaping Alfredo E. Ontiveros to lift Simon Fraser to a 1-0 win over host Northwest Nazarene in GNAC men's soccer Thursday at Finkbeiner Park on the NNU campus.

"Soccer is that kind of game where you can be the better team and don't get the result and that was the case today," NNU head men's soccer coach Coe Michaelson said.

"It was a combination of bad luck and a brilliant goal by Jovan," Michaelson added. "You're not going to see a better goal than that."

The Crusaders would have loved to see any ball they directed toward goal go in, of course, but instead NNU came painfully close time and time again.

Trailing 1-0 after Blagojevic's goal with 8:27 gone in the game, Rene Duevel banged a shot off the left goal-post in the 17^th minute for NNU.

Then it was Erik Anderson's turned to come close as his bicycle kick in the box rattled the crossbar in the 27^th minute, but did not cross the goal-line.

And in the 66^th minute, Duevel again came painfully close, heading a ball just wide left for the Crusaders (10-3-1 overall, 7-2-1 GNAC), who outshot the Clan, 12-10, but couldn't score.

Instead, it was Blagojevic's goal that held up for Simon Fraser (7-4-2, 5-3-2), which notched the victory despite playing the final 36 minutes a man down after Callum Whittaker received his second yellow card and was ejected.

But Brandon Watson made two saves in goal and got some lucky bounces off the goal-post and crossbar, as the Clan held on for the win.

Ontiveros made three saves in goal on the other end of the field for the Crusaders, who return to action on Saturday when they host Western Washington at 3 p.m.