Defense Lifts Eastern Oregon over Walla Walla
Paul Starkebaum, Sports Information Director
College Place, Wash. – Tonight was a rare Tuesday evening Cascade Conference match between the Wolves and Eastern Oregon University (4-1, 1-0). The match was a rescheduled match due to Eastern Oregon being unable to play Warner Pacific this past weekend. Both teams played well on defense, but the Mountaineers took advantage of several open looks as they beat Walla Walla (0-4, 0-3) 3-0.
The Numbers
- Walla Walla’s Kohl Tomcho recorded 16 saves
- Eastern Oregon’s Aldo Rivas had 2 assists
How It Happened
During the first half, neither team was able to create a lot of pressure on offense. Eastern Oregon remained patient with the ball, and set up several scoring opportunities in the first half that failed to find the net. However, in the 21st minute, Aldo Rivas sent a ball to Julian Wells in the middle of the field, who step around keeper Kohl Tomcho and placed his shot into the center of the goal. Walla Walla just missed on several scoring opportunities, including a shot from Nicholas O’Connor that sailed just over the top of the goal.
The Mountaineers applied more pressure in the second half by creating better scoring opportunities. In the 57th minute, Micah Hill corralled a ball in the middle of the field and tip it around a Wolves defender back to himself and sent it into the back of the net to put Eastern Oregon up 2-0. Freddy Rodriguez broke free from the pack on a pass from Aldo Rivas and dribble through the defense for Eastern Oregon’s third goal of the match. Walla Walla’s scoring opportunities were fewer in the second half, as Eastern was able to control possession the majority of the time. Despite giving up three goals, Keeper Tomcho played his best game of the season, making a number of impressive stops tonight. Eastern Oregon’s keeper Aidan Wright played an excellent game at keeper as well, earning a shutout. The Mountaineers won the match 3-0 over Walla Walla for their first conference win of the season.
Up Next
Walla Walla travels to Klamath Falls, Oregon on Friday, September 22 to play Oregon Tech. Game time is 2:00 p.m.