Box Score

SPOKANE, Wash. - With a scoring flurry of three goals in the final 11 minutes, the Whitworth University Pirates broke open a tight contest and went on to defeat the visiting George Fox University Bruins in a Northwest Conference men's soccer match Sunday afternoon here at the Whitworth soccer field.

Whitworth got on the board in the 22nd minute when Brent Zahn scored his first goal of the season from the top of the box after Justin Miller's shot bounced off a defender. It was the only scoring through the first half and the first 34 minutes of the second half.  George Fox pressured the Pirates for a 20-minute stretch of the second half, forcing Whitworth keeper Brian Sherpe to make his only save of the game, while the Bruins were also sharp defensively, keeping the home team from adding to its lead.

Whitworth finally got some breathing room when Keith Kirsch led a breakaway up the middle and dished out to Chris Stibich for a 2-0 Pirate lead in the 79th minute.  It was Stibich's first goal of the year and seemed to take some steam out of the Bruins, who were not as quick to loose balls the rest of the match, leading to two more Whitworth goals.

In the 84th minute, Cameron Bushey fired hard from the top of the box and George Fox keeper Danny Kamna made a good save, but Kekoa Mountcastle was there to clean up the loose ball for a 3-0 Whitworth lead.  In the final minute of the match, Devin Merrill won a ball at midfield and Matthew Fronk headed it on to Mountcastle, who broke free all alone against Kamna for the final goal and his fourth of the season.

Whitworth outshot George Fox 17-7, including a 7-1 edge in shots-on-goal.  Kamna went the distance and made two saves for the Bruins.

George Fox (3-4, NWC 0-2) plays its first home conference game of the season Saturday at 2:30 p.m. against Willamette University.  Whitworth (4-1-1, NWC 2-0) heads west next weekend for a pair of NWC road matches, starting with the University of Puget Sound Saturday at 2:30 p.m.