By Peter Gallagher |
Despite strong performances from Iwasaki and Sanchez, Pilot’s chances of making it to playoffs are low after dropping two matches to Gonzaga and Santa Clara
As conference play enters the last third of the season, the men’s soccer team finds themselves on the outside of the playoff picture looking in after dropping two matches to Gonzaga and Santa Clara in last week’s action at Merlo Field. The pair of defeats drops the Pilots to fifth in the WCC standings with a record of 3-5-0.
The men’s squad began WCC play in early September with five victories in seven matches, their strongest start in recent memory. But since a crushing 3-2 overtime loss to St. Mary’s on Oct. 6, the Pilots have dropped five of the past seven contests and have fallen in the WCC standings. The Pilots entered last week’s matches with a growing sense of urgency after their pre-season goal of reaching the playoffs grew dimmer by the week.
Gonzaga proved to be too much for the Portland team in a physical display last Wednesday evening. The victory was the Bulldogs’ first in 24 WCC away matches, a streak that began in February of 2009 after a win over the Pilots at Merlo. The Gonzaga defense was stifling, and Pilots midfielders and forwards struggled to string together plays in the middle of the field.
“Gonzaga’s a hard working team and they did a lot to break up the play,” senior midfielder Thomas Iwasaki said. “They definitely caused some problems for us. We got a little frustrated.”
The Wednesday night matchup against Gonzaga was Iwasaki’s first match after an MCL tear early in the season that kept him sidelined for most of October.
“Him being a senior, and the caliber player he is, just the leadership he has on the field, it’s huge for us,” teammate and freshman Eddie Sanchez said about Iwasaki’s return. “Having him back was a huge thing for us. It helped a lot, we’re glad he’s back, and we’re just going to finish the rest of these games for him and the seniors.”
Emotions flared throughout the match, with three yellow card bookings and two penalty kicks highlighting the tenacity of the conference rivalry.
“Them being so close to us, it’s even more of a rivalry game,” Sanchez said. “It’s a tough one, especially after a loss like that. Emotionally, it hurts you. It sets you back. It makes you think about how the season has been going, like ‘What do we do from here?’ Mentally it’s tough, but you just got to bounce back.”
Sanchez is in the midst of a dazzling season with the Pilots. The freshman forward led the nation in points going into last Wednesday’s match and sat at second in goals scored. On Oct. 20, Sanchez recorded the first hat trick, or three goals in one match, for a Pilot since 2003 in a 4-1 drubbing of Santa Clara in California. Yet on Friday night, the Pilots were held scoreless in 120 minutes of action as Santa Clara went on to win 1-0 in overtime.
“I think they just played us differently than they did before,” Sanchez said. “Knowing what we could do, and trying to take those opportunities that we had when we beat them to this game, they strategically changed with what they did. On our side we kept trying to do what we could do, but it’s tough when a team just sits back and doesn’t let you do what you’ve been doing all season. They knew we would jump on them, being at home and needing the win.”
The Pilots have four matches left to turn the page on a particularly dreary October chapter. As the weather chills and the days get shorter, the Pilots’ priority to come away from each match with a win remains the same.
“We’re still trying to win games,” Sanchez said. “Our goal this year was to get in the playoffs again. That’s kind of a loss. It’s hard to do that now, after dropping those two games. But we’re still going to play our game.”
Portland travels to Los Angeles and San Diego this weekend to play Loyola Marymount Nov 8 and University of San Diego on Nov 10, respectively. The Pilots will finish off their season with a pair of matches on Nov. 15 and 17 against Saint Mary’s and San Francisco on Merlo Field.
