PELLA — The Central College men's soccer team let an early lead slip away against Cornell College Wednesday in a 2-1 loss.
           
Statistically, the Dutch (2-4-0) outpaced the Rams (5-2-0) in nearly every category except the score. They had a 16-9 shots advantage and a 7-6 lead on corner kicks but lost the most important statistic.
           
"We got exactly what we deserved today," he said. "I thought was Cornell excellent in the second half and they deserved to win this game. All of the good that we did against Carleton was undone in the second half today."
           
Cornell was cited for seven yellow cards, including two for one player which resulted in a red card and the Rams playing down a man. Cornell scored both of its goals with 10 players on the pitch in the last 23 minutes.
           
"I thought they were better with 10 than they were with 11," Laidlaw said. "And I thought we were worse when they had 10 instead of 11. It's common in soccer for the team going down a man to pick it up because they know they have to."
           
The Dutch struck for a goal first as Jordan Groshek (freshman, midfielder, Onalaska, Wis.) found Brant Mueller (senior, Bettendorf) for a header on a corner kick in the 22nd minute. Mueller was primarily a defender for the Dutch in previous seasons but has moved to a more offensive role in 2021. It was his fourth goal of the year.
           
"The move to Brant up top is paying off," Laidlaw said. "We continue to like what we are getting from him."
           
It doesn't get easier for the Dutch who travel to Luther College for a 3:30 p.m. match on Saturday. The Norse are the No. 4 team in Region IX.
           
"We've challenged the guys that we need to learn from it," Laidlaw said. "We need to do better and it will start in training tomorrow. We've got a couple of days to get ready for one the best team in the region. I think we'll have the team's attention the next couple of days."