Conway – The Central Arkansas Bears celebrated its seniors in a big way on Saturday night as they defeated the Loyola Ramblers 1-0 in a crucial conference matchup. The win improved the Bears to 3-1-1 in Missouri Valley Conference play and gives them the opportunity to be crowned conference champions in back-to-back seasons with a win over the Missouri State Bears on November 3. Central Arkansas recognized seniors Niklas Sandquist, Chris Holmes, Christian Ilia and Daltyn Knutson before the match. Kasper Andersen provided the lone goal on the night, his second of the year that came early in the sixth minute.Vicent Abaso helped create the goal and was credited with the assist. Head Coach Ross Duncan was proud of his team's effort after the early score.
 
"The early goal set us up well, but it almost put us under more pressure because it lit a fire under our opponent," Duncan said. "They came at us in waves and we did a really nice job protecting Marc (Olsen). I thought our initial pressure and cover was the best it's ever been against any of our opponents this year."
 
Offensive attack was on a low on the night as both teams finished with two shots on goal and a total of 18 shots. Central Arkansas' first and only shot on goal in the first half proved vital as Anderson converted it and put his team ahead 1-0 in the sixth minute. Abaso sent in a dazzling pass that landed at Anderson's feet and he did the rest as he beat Loyola goalkeeper Josh Lagudah in the bottom right corner. The Ramblers saw their first real chance come in the 21^st minute, but a Grant Stoneman shot could not make it past Olsen. Loyola had one more chance to even the score in the 43^rd minute when Olsen was drawn out of the goal on a play, but the Ramblers could not capitalize on an open goal as they sent their shot high and went into the half down 1-0. The second half was set to be a gritty finish as both teams combined for 22 fouls in the first half.
 
After a few fouls on Loyola, Anderson nearly notched his second of the night when he had a clean look at goal, but a team save kept the score at 1-0 in the 57^th minute. The Bears' defense played a crucial role in the second half as they forced three blocked shots and held the Ramblers to only one shot on goal. Loyola had one more chance to even the score late in the half, but Marc Olsen would not allow it as he made his final save of the night in the 88^th minute and helped secure the win.
 
With all eyes on Missouri State next week, Coach Duncan knows his team has a big task looming ahead.
 
"We're treating it as a championship match. We go and get a result there and we're conference champions," Duncan said. "They're incredibly hard to break down and it's going to be a group effort to get a result, but we're built really strong now and I think tonight's result proves that."
 
The battle of the Bears is set for November 3^rd with kick-off at 6 p.m.