BOXSCORE  | VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

MORRIS, Minn. -- Augsburg College's Peter Loyd (SO, Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong HS) headed in a corner kick off a University of Minnesota-Morris defender five minutes into overtime, giving the visiting Auggies a season-opening 1-0 victory in a nonconference men's soccer game on Tuesday afternoon at the Cougar Soccer Field.

The shot, off a corner kick by Matt Bowman (SO, Maple Grove, Minn.), was officially credited as an "own goal," giving the No. 17-ranked Auggies their first victory of the season. Bowman was making his first start since missing the entire 2008 season with a life-threatening heart condition.

"There was a strong wind that affected both teams; Morris had it at their backs first, and then we had it for the second half and overtime. Our play was sloppy overall, but credit Morris for playing a role in that. We couldn't string together much and they played their backs high adding more pressure in midfield. We just didn't have the players to get in behind them today," said Augsburg head coach Greg Holker. "The goal was a product of Peter Loyd's work. Matt Bowman served a corner that Loyd knocked down across the goal line before a Morris player bumped it into the back of the net. We had several other chances in the second half -- Nick Anderson (SR, White Bear Lake, Minn.) had a header just wide from four feet -- but we didn't consistently threaten."

Goalkeeper Pascaul Venter (SR, Rochester, Minn./John Marshall HS) claimed his 23rd career shutout with an eight-save effort for the Auggies, who were outshot by a 16-15 margin. The Auggies outshot the Cougars by a 13-7 margin in the second half and overtime.

"Pascaul Venter was great when he needed to be in the first half. He had a strong presence and was in complete control of the game," Holker said. "It was good to get points from a road contest against a challenging opponent. It was our first time on grass this year, and we traveled without forwards Van Hong (JR, St. Louis Park, Minn.) and #D.J. Wendell# (SR, Princeton, Minn./Charles M. Russell (Mont.) HS). Injuries forced us to get a little creative, but we got what was most important in the end."

Tyler Weber had five saves in goal for Minnesota-Morris, also in its first game of the season. The Cougars, last season's Upper Midwest Athletic Conference postseason tournament champions, were the UMAC's top pick in the conference's preseason poll.

"Ahmed Gobana (SO, Burnsville, Minn.) improved as the game progressed. He wasn't much of a fan of the physical play in the first half, but found ways to get around that in the second session," Holker said. "#T.J. Haag# (JR, Apple Valley, Minn./Burnsville HS) made a difference when he entered in midfield. Jake Lor (SR, St. Paul, Minn./Central HS) was dangerous at moments and before David Scheller (SO, Maple Grove, Minn.) picked up an injury, he was winning 1-v-1 duals at ease on the right flank."

Augsburg opens the home portion of its schedule on Saturday (9/5) at 12 p.m., hosting Wartburg (Iowa) in a battle of national tournament veterans at Edor Nelson Field. The Knights, who have made NCAA Division III national tournament appearances the last six years, blanked MIAC regular-season and playoff champion Carleton 3-0 on Tuesday. Augsburg also appeared in the NCAA Division III national tournament last season, reaching the third round ("Sweet Sixteen") of the playoffs.