The Grand Canyon University men's soccer (2-12-1, 1-7-0) dropped a 3-1 home contest to UNLV (7-9-1, 5-3-1) today on the GCU Soccer Field in Phoenix, Ariz. The game was physical and evenly-matched throughout, with the squads even at 12 shots apiece.

The Antelopes put half of their shots on goal, while allowing just four to the Rebels.

The 'Lopes carried the offensive momentum for much of the first half, holding the 6-5 advantage in shots. However, the Rebels were the first to find the back of the net, doing so in the 34^th minute when Carlos Lara put the ball into the back left of the goal, unassisted off of a deflected ball by a GCU defender. That would stand as the lone score in the first 45 minutes.

"We just can't continue to give the other teams gifts and early leads," said head coach Petar Draksin. "Especially at this level, it is difficult to get back in the game, even when the score is just 1-0."

"It is disappointing when you make mistakes," added Draksin. "It hurts. The players know it. But we have to keep our heads up and keep playing. The speed of play at the Division I level is much faster, and these teams that we are competing against have played at this level for a long time. They get it. And we are adjusting to it."

GCU held the slight advantage in shots on target, 3-2, in the first half, but Rebels goalkeeper Ryan Harding picked up two saves while a team save prevented a GCU lead early in the half.

Daniel Wall knotted the score one just over two minutes into the second half for his first goal of the season. He was assisted by Amer Sasivarevic on a throw-in from the left side.

The teams traded shots for the next 17 minutes before the Rebels reclaimed the lead at 2-1 in the 65^th minute. Andy Rodriguez took an assist from Bradley Kamdem and kicked it over Zehring from the center of the frame. UNLV extended that lead to 3-1 in the 77^th minute on an Irvin Somera score from just inside the box. Somera was assisted by Rodrigo Fuentes.

"Daniel had an unbelievable goal to tie the score at 1, but then we gave up another goal to UNLV on miscommunication in the back," Draksin explained. "We started pushing to tie the score at two and that is what allowed them to get that third goal. I didn't want to sit back and not try to compete to get us that second goal."

Sasiveravic and Alberto Sanchez Garcia led the GCU offense with three shots apiece, while Sasiveravic put all of his attempts on target.

The 'Lopes will now travel to Colorado Springs, Colo., for a Tuesday matchup at Air Force, the makeup contest between the two teams after the original game date of Oct. 5 was postponed due to the partial government shutdown. Fans can follow the action by visiting www.gculopes.com.

"We have to work on the mental side of it, and we have to stop giving up easy goals," said Draksin. "The biggest thing we are going to focus on is to stay spirited. Our program is not used to this, but we have to stay as positive as we can."

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