Labor Day weekend, a time of rest and relaxation for most, was anything but for the Baker men’s soccer team. 

With a tough schedule ahead, beginning Friday with a game against Rockhurst University in Kansas City, Mo., the team, which began its season with two straight victories, hit a bump in the road.

The Wildcats’ fell to Rockhurst 2-0 after an early goal in the seventh minute, and a late goal in the 83rd to finalize the score.

“They held the pace of the game,” sophomore Yoshitaka Naka said. “We lost focus for awhile, but we are getting back on track.”

The matchup against Hastings College Monday at North Park did not promise to be an easy task at hand for the Wildcats.

Hastings came into the game ranked No. 15 in the NAIA, fresh off a victory against No. 10 Benedictine College.

No. 24 Baker also proved to be a difficult matchup for the Hastings Broncos.

With winds gusting between 20 and 40 miles per hour, the Wildcats came out to play with a high energy level, but struggled after conceding a goal in the 21st minute of play.

“I thought we came out with a lot of intensity and desire in the first 20 minutes,” sophomore Nick Aguilar said. “It took us a while to recover from the goal.”

The Wildcats weren’t able to come back to tie the game, but the second half proved more successful for the Wildcats.

The calm built up by Hastings in the first 45 minutes was disrupted by several close shots in the second, including a bicycle kick from sophomore Ethan Bauer and a soft touch in the 80th minute from junior Tom Lowndes.

The whistle blew and the score was cemented at 1-0 in favor of the Broncos.

Head coach Nate Houser was disappointed in the outcome of the game Monday, but is confident in his team’s ability to increase its level of play in the upcoming week.

“There is no shame … we played a top-10 team,” Houser said. “We once again proved we can compete, but we need to be able to win.”

The Wildcats now have a record of 2-2 on the season heading into the Baker Invitational.

The Baker Invitational will take place over the next two weekends at North Park.

The team will go up against Missouri Baptist University at 5 p.m. Friday in the first game of the invitational.

The Wildcats kicked off its season by defeating Southern Nazarene University 2-1 and Oklahoma Christian University 4-1.

Remaining convinced of the talent level his team is capable of playing at, Houser expects to take away a victory Friday to get the team back to its winning ways.

“If we come to play, we have a chance,” Houser said.