GC WEEKLY: Leafs have tough week across the board
Sep. 26—The Goshen College men's and women's soccer teams kicked off their Crossroads League play on Saturday with losses against Indiana Wesleyan University.
After conceding a quick goal on a lob over the arms of Goshen keeper Gracie Garcia, the women (now 0-1-0 in the conference and 3-5-1 overall) managed to hold off the No. 10 Wildcats for most of the first half.
IWU utterly dominated possession, constantly keeping the pressure on the Leafs and allowing no more than three or four passes in a row. The Wildcats added another goal five minutes before the halftime whistle on a redirected ball off a corner, and the total control continued into the second half. Just four minutes into the half, a loose ball snuck under the diving Garcia into the corner of the net.
Goshen's first real chance came a few minutes later, when Goshen midfielder Anita Tavares found herself past the back line of IWU's defense on a breakaway. As she was nearing the top of the Wildcats' box, she was pushed down from behind. Although she won a free kick, the Goshen bench erupted when the card stayed in the referee's pocket.
Tavares put her kick on goal for the Leafs' first shot of the game, but it was batted away easily for IWU goalie Hope Stacker's first and only save of the game.
After IWU scored their fourth goal on a top-class Mallory Krueger free kick, the Leafs struggled to muster another opportunity, with their only other shot attempt being a long-distance shot from forward Katie Sauder. With the Wildcats' second-string players on the field, the only real excitement in the rest of the match was when coach Justin Crew was shown a yellow card with under 10 minutes to play for his criticism of the refereeing on the night.
With their 4-0 victory, IWU remains undefeated and has now shut out seven of their nine opponents with a combined score of 35-2. They are now 8-0-1 on the season. Meanwhile, the Leafs now begin a road stretch, starting with a 7 p.m. match at Mount Vernon Nazarene University on Wednesday.
The men's soccer team fared slightly better in a 3-1 loss to the IWU team. Goshen High School alum Lucas Bontreger scored on a set piece late in the first half to give Goshen their only goal. The men's team, still winless with a 0-7-2 record, now begins a run of games at home, starting with a Wednesday night matchup with MVNU.
Across campus, the tennis team finished their season this week by bowing out of the Crossroads League tournament in the first round—once again to Indiana Wesleyan. The fifth-seeded men lost 5-2, while the women were swept 7-0. Szofia Kallai was the only Goshen woman to win more than three games total, losing 2-6, 2-6 at No. 1 singles.
The women's team played one more match that had been rescheduled from earlier in the season, losing to IU-Kokomo 5-2 on Friday. Players on both the men's and women's teams will compete in the ITA Regional Tournament as individuals, which begins on Wednesday.
After hoping for a fresh start this year, the Goshen women's volleyball team still has a long way to go after falling 3-0 to each of their first seven Crossroads League opponents. In their Wednesday night match against Spring Arbor University, the Leafs looked to be in good position at the end of the first set.
Up 24-23 in front of a packed crowd, Goshen seemed ready to secure their first set victory in conference play. After taking a timeout, though, the Cougars bounced back and won the set, 27-25. The Leafs dropped a close second set as well, 25-23, before losing 25-15 in the third.
They then had losses to to Mount Vernon Nazarene Friday and Huntington Saturday, both at home.
Goshen has arguably been playing better than in past years, but closing out sets has been a massive problem for the Maple Leafs. The Leafs will hope to win their first conference match since Nov. 1, 2019 in a Wednesday night matchup at 19th-ranked Taylor University in Upland.
Austin Hough can be reached at austin.hough@goshennews.com or at 574-538-2360. Follow him on Twitter at @AustinHoughTGN.
