North Manchester, Ind. - Manchester dropped a heartbreaking 1–0 decision to Bluffton on Wednesday night at Spartan Stadium, conceding the game-winner in the final minute of regulation.

The Spartans put together one of their most balanced defensive performances of the season, holding Bluffton scoreless for nearly 90 minutes behind a stellar outing from goalkeeper Will Martin, who turned away eight saves on 11 total shots faced. Martin came up big early, stopping multiple point-blank attempts from Bluffton's Jaden Ngufor and Roman Whorton to keep the match level through the first half.

Manchester created several quality opportunities of its own, firing six shots and earning six corner kicks, but struggled to break through the Beavers' defense. Christian Munos and Admasu Mitchell each had looks in the opening half, including a Munos strike that forced a diving save and a near-miss off the woodwork from Edwin Rodriguez. Garrett Hollis added the team's lone shot on goal after halftime.

The physical match featured a combined 26 fouls and four yellow cards. Despite maintaining solid defensive shape for most of the contest, Manchester was undone in the 89th minute, when Bluffton finished from close range for the lone goal.

With the loss, Manchester moved to 3-8-4 overall and 2-4-1 in HCAC play. The Spartans will look to rebound in their next conference matchup as they continue to battle for postseason positioning.