At Saturday's end-of-the-year celebration, five players (L to R: Travis Wells, Aaron Franklin, Kaleb Herring, Mark Mendenhall, and Chris Smerke) posed for one final picture following Corban's double overtime victory over rival Northwest Christian.
Header Sends Corban Seniors Off With Victory
BOX SCORE
SALEM, Ore. – Senior Kaleb Herring (Waco, Texas) scored the game-winning goal with 76 seconds remaining in the second overtime, as Corban's men's soccer team defeated conference rival Northwest Christian, 1-0 in double overtime, Saturday afternoon at Warrior Field.
In the final game of the season for the both teams, the Warriors and Beacons played under torrential rain that made the field seem like everyone was playing soccer in a bathtub.
With the win, Corban closed out the 2009 season on a four-game unbeaten streak ending at 5-10-2 overall and 4-9-1 in Cascade Collegiate Conference action. Meanwhile, Northwest Christian concludes its '09 campaign at 1-15-2 overall and 0-12-2 in conference play.
With very little traction around the field, neither team could use its breakaway speed to get away from the defense. On numerous occasions, both teams had opportunities to secure a potential one-on-one situation with the opposing keeper only to have the chance taken away by the elements.
Northwest Christian had numerous scoring chances in the opening few minutes, as the Beacons' Denton Brown sent the game's opening shot high before having his second shot saved in the 17th minute.
Corban had the best scoring chance of the opening half when senior Jared Rust (Palo Cedro, Calif.) took the ball down the left side of NCU's penalty area and got the Beacons' keeper to commit before sending a shot into the outside left portion of the net in the 28th minute.
Neither team would get on the scoreboard over the opening 45 minutes, as Northwest Christian held a slight advantage in shots (4-3).
The second half was controlled by the host Warriors, as Corban unleashed 11 shots that included seven by junior Travis Wells (Springfield, Ore.) over the opening 25 minutes. Unfortunately, neither team could get on the scoreboard as the season's final game went into extra play.
In the first overtime, Northwest Christian had a pair of scoring opportunities that were saved by Corban's keeper in the final two minutes. NCU's T.J. Prentice had the Beacons' first scoring chance when he unloaded a shot at the 98:40 mark only to have a diving Warrior net-minder turn back the game-winning opportunity. Less than 30 seconds later, Northwest Christian's David Lee rocketed a shot that was punched up and over the cross bar in the final minute to help preserve the scoreless tie.
The second and final overtime started with Herring attempting to end the game off the opening kick, as he sent a shot from midfield that went straight to NCU's keeper. Just over eight minutes later, freshman Peter Martin (Salem, Ore.) took the ball down the far sideline and sent a crossing pass into the box where Herring was waiting for the game-winning header at the 108:44 mark. After Herring's first goal of the season, the team celebrated with a unison dive along the wet ground in front of Corban's fans.
Corban would control the game's offensive flow, as the Warriors registered six more shot (18-12) and four more corner kicks (6-2) than Northwest Christian.
Senior goalkeeper Aaron Franklin (Red Bluff, Calif.) stood between the pipes for the entire game and registered a game-high six saves. In the process, the fourth-year Warrior also concluded his career in the midst of a 440-plus minute scoreless streak en route to capturing his 13th career shutout.
Northwest Christian would use a pair of keepers, as Cuyler Ziegler began the game and played the opening 54-plus minutes before leaving due to an injury. Ziegler was replaced by Stephen Melgar, who played the final 55-plus minutes and registered a team-high four saves.
Corban concluded the 2009 season in seventh place in the final league standings, while winning four of its final seven games that included one tie.