FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Indiana Tech men's soccer team came up short against Aquinas on Saturday evening, falling 3-0, as the Saints would deny Tech from winning the regular season WHAC Championship on senior day.
The Warriors entered the game in first place in the WHAC standings, one point ahead of second place Aquinas. Tech would win the WHAC regular season title with a tie or a win against the Saints, while the Saints would only win it by defeating the Warriors, so the stakes were high, especially considering the past games between these two rivals in recent years.
Before the game, eleven Warriors would be honored in the senior day festivities, including
Philip Kooper,
Kodai Kobayashi,
Marc Junca,
Lucca Motta,
Luke Jones,
Warren Moss,
Lorenzo Battagliarin,
Felix Jung,
Nathan Raguin,
Ryan Steele, and
Lewis Roberts. As the game started and moved through the first half, neither side could really gain an edge as it would be pretty even between the two teams. The Warriors would finish the half with five shots, while Aquinas had four. However, Aquinas would take a 1-0 lead into halftime after converting on a penalty kick in the final minute of the half turning the tide in the game. The Warriors would now need to push for an equalizer in the second half with only 45 minutes remaining. Aquinas would lockdown in defense knowing they were close to the title. With the Warriors pressing and pushing for a goal, Aquinas would capitalize on a counterattack and strike the dagger into the Warriors in the 66
th minute. The Saints would add a third in the 73
rd minute to diminish any last hopes for Tech, going on to win 3-0.
Philip Kooper would make three saves for the Warriors in goal, while
Douglas Appiah Kubi and
Luke Jones would lead the offensive efforts registering two shots apiece.
Ultimately, the Warriors would be outplayed by a strong Aquinas side, failing to score for the first time since September 16
th during their nonconference schedule. Tech would finish in second place in the WHAC standings with 24 points, earning the number two seed in the WHAC Tournament for the second year in a row. The Orange & Black will look to make a repeat of last season's WHAC Tournament when they took home the trophy, the fourth straight WHAC Tournament Title for Indiana Tech.
Tech finishes at 7-1-3 in WHAC play and 8-4-5 in the regular season. The Warriors will host No. 8 seeded Cornerstone University in the first round of the WHAC Tournament on Saturday, November 4
th at 1pm at Warrior Athletic Field.
- TECH -
