Early Goal Enough as Statesmen Advance to Final Site for First Time Ever
Oskaloosa–Hugo Cornish (Fr., Sydney, Australia, Business Management) scored an acrobatic goal in the second minute and the Statesmen defense pitched a shutout as the William Penn men’s soccer team advanced to the Final Site with a 1-0 win over Cumberlands (Ky.) in the NAIA National Championship Second Round Saturday.
In its fifth trip to nationals, #13 seed WPU (12-4-4) is finally advancing to the Final Site. The navy and gold will next face #4 seed Dalton State (Ga.) in the Round of 16 on Monday, November 27 at 4 p.m. at Scheels Stryker Sports Complex in Wichita, Kan. It will be the first-ever meeting between the two schools in men’s soccer.
The hosts got on the board right away against the Patriots (7-4-5). Lukas Koch (Sr., Moers, Germany, Master’s of Sports Management) launched a throw-in into the box and it was headed to the other side of the field. Luigi Mongan (Jr., Manchester, England, Business Management) then tracked it down and punched it over to Daniel Wilson (Jr., Dublin, Ireland, Wellness and Recreation), who immediately crossed it back into the box.
Awaiting the ball with his back turned to the goal was Cornish, who flipped backwards and sent a bicycle-kick goal into the netting exactly 100 seconds into the afternoon’s action.
Despite giving up 13 shots (eight for WPU), only four were on goal as the Statesmen were able to secure their ninth shutout of the season, tying the 2018 squad for the most in program history.
After holding a 6-4 edge in shots in the first half, the hosts went on the defensive and were outshot by UC 9-2 after the break, but few of those tries had much juice. WPU, which was the more physical squad with 15 fouls (eight for the Patriots) also overcame a 7-2 deficit in corner kicks.
Sean Bohan (Jr., Dublin, Ireland, Business Management), who is now the school single-season record-holder with nine shutouts, was at the forefront of the clean sheet, posting four saves.
Offensively, William Penn managed six shots on goal. Joseph Kitengie (Sr., Benoni, South Africa, Master’s of Organization Leadership) led the way with two, while Timothy King (Jr., London, England, Biology), Miguel Menendez (Fr., Oveido, Spain, Wellness and Recreation), and Ruben Martin (Grad., Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain) all joined Hugo with one shot on the target.
“Our guys dug deep and grinded out a clean sheet at the most important time,” Head Coach Simon Brown said. “We were not at our best, but we defended like warriors. Cumberlands is a quality side and it was a big win, with probably the best goal Drost Field has ever seen. We look forward to competing against the best in the country at the Final Site in Wichita.”
