Interesting informative topic. However the OP said it in his opening statement that allowing the 2 dogs to meet nose to nose was a mistake.
From the there the whole scenario went down hill. Unfortunately the OP was left holding the bag. Nevertheless the dogs should have not been allowed to get that close to each other. It seems there was some aggression between them which is always bad and not permissible in a CG setting.
I think we can all gain something from the OP's experience. and consider it a lesson learned.