GREAT FALLS, Mont. – One thing that is guaranteed when Argo soccer and (5) Corban University men's soccer meet is that the game will be close and intense. The team's 2017 meeting held true to that pattern as two goals from Christoffer Bisbo had UP close to upsetting the fifth-ranked team in the nation but ultimately lost 3-2.
 
UP entered the day a bit short handed at the forward position with the team's second-leading scorer Christopher Chavez sitting after drawing a red card in the team's previous match, and sophomore forward Cole Myers out with an injury.
 
That only left two true forwards left on the roster, senior Christoffer Bisbo and George Holloway. In the first half, Bisbo was all the team really needed.
 
Corban got on the board early, drawing first blood in just the second minute. A Warrior corner kick was swung to the top of the 18-yard box where Jordan Moss hit a stunning one-time strike that curled into the net to make the score 1-0 Corban.
 
After the first five minutes, the Argos started to settle in a began to dictate the pace of play. UP continued to press its advantage for the next 10 minutes, earning 3 corner kicks and getting off 3 shots including 1 shot on goal.
 
In the 24th minute, UP's freshman midfielder Sebastian Ongkowijawa set a ball into the Corban penalty box that All-Conference goalkeeper Jordan Farr initially came out for to punch it away, but then started to back when it became clear Bisbo would get there first. Finding Farr off his line, Bisbo deftly headed the ball over the keeper for his eighth goal of the season.
 
The rest of the half was a series of punch-counterpunch between the two teams and it looked like the period would end with a 1-1 tie but the Argos had other plans. A cross in the 45th minute found junior midfielder Luis Macias who got off a shot, but the attempted was blocked by a Warrior defender. The ball then bounced to Bisbo who poked it into the back of the net.
 
Not only did the Argos have a 2-1 lead at the half against the team that beat them in the 2016 Cascade Collegiate Conference Finals, they had the better statistics too. UP outshot the Warriors 11-5 in the half and had one more corner kick.
 
The tables turned in the second half, and while both teams had scoring chances, Corban was the more dangerous side. In the 55th minute, the Warrior's All-American Timur Zhividze hit a free kick that was going to score, but UP's Marc Girones was able to get a hand on it and tip it into the crossbar. The ball then bounced off the crossbar and fell to the feet of Igor Hubenya who found an open net to score on.
 
Both teams spent the next 18 minutes trying to break the deadlock and UP came awfully close in the 66th minute. A Corban foul set up an Argo free kick about 20 yards out and about 5 yards from the right sideline. Junior Adrian Gomez took the kick and played a perfect ball that dipped to about head height about 7 yards from the goal. Holloway's head got a piece of the ball, flicking it onto the near post where once against Bisbo was waiting. He slid to reach the ball and redirected it into the right corner of the net. While Bisbo was onside when Gomez made contact, the flick from Holloway reset the offside line and Bisbo was on the wrong side of it, negating the goal.
 
Corban had a similar play a few minutes later, and then a stellar crack from Zhividze beat Girones in the 74th minute. His effort came from just beyond the penalty box while he found a slight crack of space between two Argo defenders to get the shot off.
 
UP made a series of desperation attacking efforts in the final few minutes, but without any rest for the team's attacking group all game, the Argos just didn't have enough gas left in the tank to pull it off.
 
With his 2 goals, Bisbo has already surpassed the goal total scored by the team's scoring leader in 2016, Mohammad Oulare who scored 8 goals in his senior season. Bisbo entered the game ranking 8th in the NAIA in Goals per Game (1.400) and 11th in Points per Game (3.000) both of which will probably go up by the end of the day.
 
While the Argos didn't pull off the win, the team did prove that it can hang with one of the top teams in the nation and that if the two teams should meet again come playoff time, it should be another game to watch. As it is, the loss brings UP's record to 3-3 (2-2) on the year, with team's next match coming on the road against Warner Pacific College on September 29.