News Release Date:
Sunday, November 1

WALLA WALLA, Wash. --A second-half rally fell just a bit short as the Whitman College men's soccer team dropped a 3-2 Northwest Conference decision to Willamette Sunday afternoon in Salem, Ore.

After getting its first goal in the eighth minute of play, Willamette tacked on two more within a 36-second span in the 31st minute.

Jordan Thomas

With the Bearcats up 3-0, Whitman got off five shots in the last seven minutes of the first half, forcing the Willamette keeper to make three saves.

The Missionaries nearly dented the scoring column in the fourth minute of the second half, but a shot by Todd Wallenius bounced off one of the posts. 

Whitman broke through at the 77:00 mark when Jordan Thomas took a pass from Wallenius and scored from 10 yards out on the left side of the field. It was the first goal of the season for Thomas.

The Missionaries nearly pulled to within a single goal when a Bearcat handball in the penalty area gave Wallenius a penalty kick with four minutes left to play. Wallenius drilled a bullet that bounced off the left post and back onto the field. Sam Freedman pounded a rebound shot from 10 yards that was saved by the Willamette keeper.

With 90 seconds left on the game clock, Wallenius knocked a ball into the penalty area that one of the Willamette defenders headed into his own goal. That cut Whitman's deficit to 3-2, but the Missionaries managed just one more shot, an attempt by Wallenius that sailed high.

Whitman outshot the Bearcats 9-1 in the second half to finish with a 16-11 advantage for the game. That included a 10-5 edge in shots on goal. The Missionaries also had seven corner kicks, two more than Willamette.

Nic McDonald handled the keeper duties for Whitman in the first half. Tim Shu took over in the second stanza but didn't have to make a single save. 

Wallenius led the offense with four shots. Conner Bottomly and Beau Morton took three shots apiece with both players putting two on goal. 

Whitman also got two shots each from Thomas, Jed Jacobson and Sam Freedman.

The Missionaries travel to Spokane on Saturday to finish their season against Whitworth. 

Box score

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CONTACT: Dave Holden
Sports Information Director
Whitman College, Walla Walla, Wash.
509 527-5902; holden@whitman.edu