Fort Wayne, Ind. | Traveling over halfway across the country to play their Opening Round game for the National Tournament of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the Warner Pacific University Men’s Soccer team (16-4-2) fell short against the host Indiana Tech Warriors (17-1-3), bringing their magical season to an unfortunate end after a 0-4 defeat.
Pushing to their absolute limit, the Knights were unable to keep up with the constant pressure that the Warriors applied at every edge of the field, specifically on the offensive end for Warner Pacific. Being held to their lowest shot total of the year (2), the Knights were abnormally outshot by Indiana Tech, who had 16 shots on the day, 9 of which were on goal. While the Knights’ opportunities were slim to none, the chances they did have were the best they would see all game, as both shots came on goal, and both being saved miraculously by Warriors’ goalkeeper Jaume Salvado.
After a relatively quiet first 42 minutes of gameplay, the Warriors first struck on a corner kick opportunity that the Knights were not prepared for, allowing another Indiana Tech player to fly up the sideline, allowing a better shot to be taken on goal. Once the ball was in the penalty box, it took Warriors’ midfielder Antonio Marra all but a rebound opportunity to sink the 1-0 lead into the back of the net, past the sprawling arms of Knights’ goalkeeper Alexis Calderilla-Hurtado.
After halftime, the floodgates officially opened for the Warriors, as IT midfielder Marc Junca had his way with Warner Pacific, scoring all three goals in the second half for Indiana Tech, and netting a hat-trick in the NAIA Opening Round.
The Knights will end their season at 16-4-2, and will return to play next year as the defending Regular Season Cascade Collegiate Conference Champions, looking to defend their title against one of the most competitive NAIA soccer conferences in the nation.
Head Coach Troy Ready is graduating nine senior players this year, and will look to replace the starters of that group with the healthy and unique depth he has at every position. If there is any take away the 2021 season has provided Knights fans with, it’s that the future is bright with Coach Ready at the helm.