MEQUON, Wis. – Concordia University Wisconsin couldn't find its offensive rhythm on Saturday afternoon in a 9-6 non-conference loss to Olivet College at Fitting Field.

The Falcons scored in the early stages of the second quarter to go ahead 5-3, but the Comets came to life and rattled off five unanswered goals, the final with 10:37 to play in the game for an 8-5 lead. CUW added a man-up score with 7:19 left on the clock, but couldn't get anything after that.

Junior Danny Bundra (Lake Zurich, Ill.) helped the Falcons with 12-of-19 faceoff wins and junior Thomas Mueller (Prior Lake, Minn.) made 12 saves in goal. However, they were outshot 37-28 and finished 1-of-4 on extra-man opportunities.

During a 27 minute and 31 second stretch in the middle of the game, the Comets scored seven of the nine goals in the game, enough for the victory. OC was limited by CUW's defense and finished 0-of-5 on the extra-man chances.

Senior Derek Brueske (Hopkins, Minn.) scored a pair of goals to lead the Falcons, as the offense was balanced with five players finding the back of the net. Mueller picked up seven ground balls and junior Mark Wilson (Calgary, Alberta) had six ground balls. Senior Mitch Trapp (Hartland, Wis.) and Christopher Grenz (Centennial, Colo.) each caused three turnovers.

Dakota Badder paced the Comets (1-0) with a hat trick, while James Collins and Nino Minaudo each scored twice. Badder and Collins were also credited for two assists apiece. Defensively, Kyle Borek led all players with five caused turnovers and picked up six ground balls.

Each team performed well on clears, with CUW going 25-of-29 and OC finishing 21-of-25. At times the offense was unbalanced and the defense was causing havoc, as the Falcons turned the ball over 25 times and the Comets had 23 turnovers.

CUW (0-2) returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 28 at 1 pm at the University of Dubuque.