Lourdes held a decisive shot advantage on Wednesday evening, but Mount Vernon Nazarene came away with the lone goal of the match as the Cougars defeated the Gray Wolves 1-0 in the season opener at Wildcat Stadium.
 
"We're certainly disappointed with the result but for our first game I thought there were a lot of things we can build off of," head coach Matt Johnson said afterwards.  "We need to improve our composure and execution around the goal.  We had quite a few moments where just a little bit more quality on our part would have resulted in a goal." 
 
Neither team found the back of the net in the opening 45 minutes, with Lourdes holding an 8-4 shot advantage.  Alex Brock (Sylvania, Ohio/Southview H.S.) made four stops in the first half while Bram Stolp kept the Gray Wolves off the scoreboard with three saves of his own.
 
Mount Vernon Nazarene (1-2) broke through just 5:12 into the second half.  Sam Hershey sent a lead pass through the middle to Keon Boney, who got past the Lourdes defense into the box and scored far post.
 
Lourdes would have its chances in the second half, playing the final 20 minutes with a man advantage following a Cougar red card.  The Gray Wolves would outshoot Mount Vernon Nazarene 12-3 in the second half, finishing with a 20-7 edge overall, but was unable to find the equalizer.
 
Brock finished with six saves overall while Stolp pushed aside four Lourdes attempts.  Martin Coronel (Asuncion, Paraguay/San Jose H.S.) led the Gray Wolves with four total shots, two of which were on frame.
 
"Give credit to MVNU," Johnson added.  "They hung in and batted really well after the red card.  Hopefully we'll bring our shooting shoes with us on Saturday against Marian."
 
Lourdes (0-1) will close out its season-opening homestand on Saturday evening, entertaining Marian (Ind.). Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Wildcat Stadium.