Box Score NEWBERG, Ore. --- After securing a 2-1 road victory over Linfield Saturday, the George Fox men's soccer team headed home to host Willamette in an explosive match. The Bearcats ended up just edging the Bruins, 3-2.
Recap:
Willamette wasted no time in the early going, using a well-placed header off a corner to open up the scoring at 1-0. The Bruins were able to respond in the 27th minute after Alan Rojas found Kody Ulrich for the equalizer, 1-1. The Bearcats did go into the half with the lead, scoring a beautiful goal from Sonachi Umeh, who received a pass from Quinn Mello-Bastida, which setup the one-on-one with the Bruin keeper.
The Bruins went into intermission down, 2-1.
The opening 20 minutes of play in the second felt like a rollercoaster. Play was back and forth and possession seemed to come and go as it pleased. The Bruins found some room in the 74th minute after Sean Owens created space, and drilled a ball well outside the box over the Bearcats' keeper to tie the game up at 2-2. It looked like extra time was inevitable, but the Bearcats responded, scoring the game-winner in the 78th minute with another header off a corner.
The Bearcats held on and finished the game with the 3-2 victory.
Top Performers:
Owens led the squad with three shots, netting one goal. Nine other Bruins recorded one shot, with Ulrich being the other goal scorer for the Bruins. Austin Burdick recorded three saves on the day.
What Comes Next:
The Bruins (1-7-1, 1-3 NWC) will hit the road next week with a game against Whitman on Oct. 1 and Whitworth on Oct. 2.
