Statesmen Fall 2-0 in Columbia
Columbia, Mo.– The final regular season game for the William Penn men’s soccer team did not go as planned. Despite keeping things level through the first 45, the Columbia Cougars eventually pushed through the defense to score two goals with under 15 minutes to go as the Statesmen fell 2-0. With the loss, the Statesmen will finish the regular season at 8-7 overall.
The whole game was pretty scrappy and close throughout, but it was Columbia that got the first crack at goal off of a corner kick five minutes in. The Cougars got the first shot from the delivery, but the Statesmen blocked the shot before it reached Rafael Martins (Jr., Boca Raton, Fla.).
The Cougars got the next shot as well, almost 10 minutes later, but it missed the target. Despite the navy and gold trying to get the ball up to their forward players, they could not find any room to operate. It took a shade over half an hour for the Statesmen to garner a shot, as a ball finally bounced correctly for Hevany Motta (Jr., Santo Antao, Cape Verde). He made a decent strike, but Liam Gibbs collected the save for CC.
The final 14 minutes saw chances missed by both sides, as the Cougars missed the net on one shot and Martins made a save with 13 minutes to go on the next attempt. WPU had a flurry of activity as Luke Andrews (Jr., Andover, England) missed a shot over the bar and Milton Magana (Jr., Los Angeles, Calif.) followed suit three minutes later. Columbia got the last corner kick of the half, but the ball was cleared away, taking a scoreless game into the halftime break.
WPU had been outshot 6-3 in the first 45, but the visitors looked to have found their footing. With each goalie making one save, the teams returned to the field to see who would break the ice first.
Edgar Tavares (Jr., Everett, Wash.) fired the first ball at the net in the second half six minutes into the frame, but Gibbs again made the save. Columbia had a great counter-attack that forced Martins to make a good save to keep things 0-0 shortly thereafter.
The shot tally continued to rise for the Cougars as they forced Martins to make another save just shy of the hour mark. The game became a physical battle as both sides jousted for control of the midfield. As the clock continued to wind down, very little separated the two teams and overtime seemed to loom.
WPU had a corner kick with 19 minutes to go, but could not get a shot away. Despite some valiant defending by the navy and gold, the home side found the break in the 79 minute, as the Cougars netted the opening goal.
The Statesmen tried to rally as Kenedy Deviska (Jr., Pignon, Haiti, Wellness & Recreation) got a shot away, but it sailed wide. As the team continued to press up the field, they gave the ball back to the Cougars, who broke the other way. WPU fouled to stop the attack, but the Cougars scored from the ensuing free kick a few yards from the top of the 18-yard box. The final blow for the Statesmen was William Thyer (Jr., Bridgend, Wales, Sports Management) picking up a red card in the 87th minute. Up 2-0, the Cougars would hold on to the lead for the final few minutes to get the win.
Martins made four saves on the night, while Andrews had a team-high two shots as only Tavares and Motta could find a shot on target. WPU was outshot 16-6 on the night.
“The boys gave it everything,” said Head Coach Simon Brown. “The 2-0 final line is probably a fair result. We had a couple of chances in the second half that could have went our way, but we didn’t do enough to score. Everyone is looking forward to mentally checking out after a 15-game fall schedule, in addition to dealing with COVID-19. We will use this result as motivation for the spring season.”
Next Up: The Statesmen will have to wait until the spring to play in the Heart of America Athletic Conference Tournament. WPU is schedule to host a quarterfinal game on April 10 at Drost Field.
