By: Janeth Beltrán Apodaca | Staff Writer
This past weekend, the Whitworth men’s soccer team started with a loss but managed to redeem themselves with a win the following day. The Pirates lost to Willamette 2-1 on Saturday, Oct. 1, but beat Linfield 3-0 on Sunday, Oct. 2.
Whitworth started off aggressively, against Willamette, tallying multiple shot attempts in the first 15 minutes.
The first goal was scored by Beckett Arthur, after stealing the ball from a member of the opposite team and scoring on the left side of the goal.
Though after Arthur’s goal, the Pirates (4-4-2) struggled to keep the lead against Willamette.
The second goal of the game was scored by Willamette’s Jett Starr in the 28th minute with an assist from Pierce Gallway.
At halftime, the Pirates had more total shots 9-3.
In the second half, Whitworth was not able to get another shot past the goalkeeper, Pierluca Carnovale, despite creating multiple scoring opportunities.
Jake Oetinger scored the winning goal for Willamette after the Pirates couldn’t control the corner kick.
Finishing Saturday’s game with a loss, the Pirates came back on the field the next day for a match against the Linfield Wildcats.
One of the goals for Sunday’s game was to “play more guys than we did in the previous match,” said Head Coach Jeremy Payne. “You got to focus on the next game and make the adjustments…”
The second game of the weekend looked a lot different; Whitworth Pirates beat the Linfield Wildcats 3-0, scoring all three goals during the first half of the game.
The first two goals were scored by Tyler Wisen.
The first goal took place in the 11th minute.
Wisen’s second goal came in the 14th minute, after receiving a pass from Arthur who recorded his fourth assist of the season.
“We just wanted a clean sheet going into the game, that was kind of a bigger focus, but to score was really special,” said Wisen.
Jaime Rodriguez scored the third goal for the Pirates during the 36th minute.
Overall, the Pirates finished with six more shot attempts (6-0), more corner kicks (5-3) and saves (0-3).
The latest game for the Pirates was on Nov. 5, in Spokane, Wash., against Whitman. The Pirates lost 2-4.
