The College of DuPage men’s soccer team (5-7-1) were held to a 1-1 draw in a heated match against the Falcons of Harry S. Truman College. The match finished with a total of eight yellow cards, and a red card for Chaps’ Erik Crisostomo for receiving two yellow cards in one game.

Harry S. Truman College was awarded a penalty opportunity in the 86th minute after Chaps’ Jacob Tourtillott fouled an opposing player from behind. The Falcon player whiffed the penalty shot completely over the goal, sparing the goalkeeper any need to dive for it.

Despite the draw result, Chaps’ goalkeeper Sam Negus finished the game with 12 saves, saving the team from another loss at home with two fully stretched saves.

“I thought we played very well since [Harry S. Truman] is a very good team, to be fair,” Negus said.. “They pressed us well and tested us, and for the most part, we defended well as a team and stayed disciplined. I’m glad I played well, but it’s more important we got the draw as a team, It would’ve been nice if we won.”

Despite the draw result, the head coach Zac Ludwig was proud of his team’s efforts and ability to compete against a technical and physical team.

“It was a tough game and a game that was hard to get a result in,” Ludwig said. “I thought the guys did well to play hard and be generally consistent throughout the game. It’s not the result we wanted, but (I’m) not fully disappointed. [Negus] has been solid and consistently consistent for us. He has been able to get us out of tough situations and shows a lot of good leadership and composure in those moments.”

Luis Gutierrez finished the game with a goal after scoring in the 21st minute of the game from 20 yards out to give the Chaps a 1-0.

“We could’ve won this game [by] an easy 3-1 [score],” said Gutierrez. “We failed a lot of our opportunities, and we dropped our intensity the first 20 minutes of the second half. [Negus] is a big part of this team and a very good captain. Throughout the season, has been saving our [butts] a ton and clutching up.” 

The Chaparrals will take Kankakee Community College on Oct. 16 at 6:30 p.m. at Bjarne Ullsvik Stadium.