McKENZIE, Tenn. – Facing a team receiving votes in the most recent NAIA Coaches' Top 25 Poll and following its first loss of the year, Missouri Baptist men's soccer was unable to muster enough offense to get a result and was handed a 3-2 defeat at the hands of Bethel (Tenn.) for its second loss in two games.
 
Like much of the previous game being filled with bookings, No. 23 MBU (5-2) would find themselves in a chippy contest where 12 yellow cards were shown. With both sides coming off dropped points in the past week and desperate to be back in the win column, that resolve showed through in the effort of both teams, as the first half was a back-and-forth affair.
 
Bethel (4-0-2) drew first blood with a thunderous Sergio Baguena strike inside of 10 minutes (7:39). The Wildcats would test goalkeeper Callum McKinlay repeatedly in the first half, forcing the junior into five saves with six of their nine shots being on target. The Spartans would push for an equalizer and eventually got it in the form of a Bethel own goal. The high press of the MoBap front line, starting with senior Eliman Kane, ended in the Bethel defense putting the ball in its own net off a goal kick just before intermission (38:08).
 
Another goal from the Wildcats off a mistake from the Spartan defense ended with a long low shot trickling in past a backpedaling McKinlay (53:07). Bethel held off the Spartans from getting a second tying score long enough to put in another late in the game against the run of play, a low driving shot across the box from Gregory Cousins (82:17)
 
MBU managed to make things interesting at the death after Wildcats goalkeeper Norberto Lima Vieira tipped away a corner kick in the box, but only as far as Louie Perez. The senior forward collected the loose ball 10 yards from the net and fired in a goal for the third game running (86:58). Alas, the late push for a draw was not enough, and the Spartans will return home from the two-game road trip in Tennessee with two losses on their record.
 
Missouri Baptist will get a week to regroup before traveling again, this time to Nebraska for a Saturday afternoon kickoff against the Bellevue Bruins on Sept. 24th at 1 p.m. in Bellevue, Neb.