Lourdes took a one-goal lead into halftime on Friday afternoon, but Concordia (Mich.) scored five straight goals in the second half to pull in front and the Cardinals defeated the Gray Wolves 10-8 at Wildcat Stadium in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference opener for both schools.
 
"Every game in the WHAC is a challenge and we fought hard today but came up short," head coach Patrick Yannarelli said afterwards.  "We need to focus on the basics and mold the squad through more collaborative teamwork.  We will work hard to be ready next week."
 
The Gray Wolves jumped in front early as Tyler Pezzot (Beavercreek, Ohio/Beavercreek H.S.) and Jake Noel (Knoxville, Tenn./William Blount H.S.) tallied goals in the game's first five minutes.  Leading 2-1 as time was winding down in the opening quarter, Kyle Schiel (Toledo, Ohio/Southview H.S.) found the back of the cage as the horn sounded to give Lourdes a two-goal lead after 15 minutes.
 
Schiel scored again in the second quarter between a pair of Cardinal goals as Lourdes took a 4-3 lead into intermission.
 
Cory Campbell (Dayton, Ohio/Bellbrook H.S.) pushed the lead to 5-3 just 1:34 into the second half before Concordia tallied back-to-back goals to tie the game.  Chad Causley (Clinton Township, Mich./L'Anse Creuse H.S.) put the Gray Wolves in front for the final time with 6:42 to play in the third, before the Cardinals scored three times in the final 2:14 of the quarter, including a pair of goals just 22 seconds apart in the final minute.
 
Two more goals to open the third extended the Cardinals lead to four before Campbell and Drew Gilhooly (Livonia, Mich./Detroit Catholic Central H.S.) scored late to pull Lourdes within two for the game's final margin.
 
Concordia (3-0, 1-0 WHAC) outshot Lourdes 40-33 for the game, including 23-17 on goal, while the Gray Wolves had a slight 27-26 ground ball advantage.  Nick Johnson (Perrysburg, Ohio/Perrysburg H.S.) had a game-high eight shot attempts for Lourdes while noel had five ground balls.
 
Tyler Queen (Odenton, Md./Arundel H.S.) made 13 saves in goal for the Gray Wolves while Sam Bowling had nine stops in net for the Cardinals.
 
Lourdes (2-2, 0-1) will take to the road on Wednesday evening, traveling to Adrian, Mich. to face Siena Heights.  The opening faceoff is set for 7 p.m. at O'Laughlin Stadium.