The University of Redlands men’s soccer team experienced the depth of the Northwest Conference firsthand as the Bulldogs fell, 2-3, to Linfield College (OR) on Sunday in Santa Cruz.

The Wildcats scored the lone goal of the first half as Travis Isaacs booted a ball from Michael Camacho into the back of the net at 30:56.

Sophomore midfielder Cody Carlson (Burbank, CA) blasted a shot past Linfield’s keeper, Cody Tipton, in the 49th minute to knot the score at one.

Nick Jauregui took advantage of a corner kick at the 57-minute mark to put Linfield up 2-1, and Travis Isaacs bolstered the Wildcat tally with a goal at 68:26.

The Maroon and Gray pulled within one as freshman forward Alex Laughton (Pleasanton, CA) scored his second goal in as many games in the 80th minute, pushing a pass from senior midfielder Cale Rodriguez (Norwalk, CA) past the Wildcat keeper.

Redlands was unable to convert another scoring opportunity in the final 10 minutes of action, and Linfield walked away with the victory. The last time the two squads met was on Sept. 5, 2005, where the Bulldogs won, 1-0, in McMinnville, OR.

Between the pipes for the Maroon and Gray, senior goalkeeper Evan Hobson (San Diego, CA) registered four saves.

The Bulldogs earned plenty of opportunities to stop the Wildcats, outchancing Linfield in corner kicks, 8-1, and in shots, 14-12.

Redlands (1-2-1) kicks off its conference season against Whittier College on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in Whittier.