Drury University Athletics

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Drury men's soccer suffered its first defeat of the season, falling 1-0 to Oklahoma Christian Saturday evening. 
 
The Panthers started on the front foot, with Mason Platts finding the first shot on target, forcing a save from Oklahoma Christian's Dante Caffaro in the fourth minute. Caua Nascimento continued the pressure with a shot that went wide left in the 20th minute. 
 
Drury continued to control the opening half, as Platts and Sam Tagg forced saves from  Caffaro in the 21st and 24th minutes. Dane Prost closed out the first-half action with another shot on target, forcing Caffaro into his fourth save of the half. The Panthers and Eagles went into halftime scoreless. 
 
The first chance of the second half fell to Oklahoma Christian's Kenzo Shabazz-Edwards, who headed a cross from Grayson Schmidt into the right side of the net in the 56th minute. Caua Nascimento tried to respond with a long-range effort in the 60th minute, forcing Dante Caffaro to make a save near the upper corner. 
 
Drury sent more players forward as the Eagles began to sit deeper. Oklahoma Christian found opportunities on the counterattack, creating four shots over a 10-minute span, two of which were saved by Ben Barnett. The Panthers continued to press for an equalizer, but could not find a breakthrough, falling to Oklahoma Christian 1-0.
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• Drury created more chances than Oklahoma Christian and held a 6-4 advantage in shots on goal.
• The Panthers held the Eagles without a shot in the first half.
• Drury earned three more corner kicks than Oklahoma Christian.
• Ben Barnett recorded his first three saves of the season. 
• Mason Platts led the Panthers with three shots, two on target.
• The Panthers featured 19 players across 90 minutes. 

UP NEXT
The Panthers close out the non-conference schedule on the road against Northeastern State on Sept. 7.

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