Posted: Nov 06, 2019
Men's Soccer ends season with first round playoff loss to Spokane
Traveling across the state for a mid-week first round playoff game always presents a number of challenges. Late-night bus rides from Puyallup to the other side of the Cascades. Sleeping in unfamiliar hotel beds. The always present nerves of a stressful loser-out match against the #2 team from the East Region.
In the past three years, the Raider Men's Soccer team has taken on this challenge, and been hugely successful, coming away with three first-round 'upset' victories against higher ranked opponents. This year the challenge presented by the Sasquatch of Spokane Community College was just a bit more than the Raiders could overcome. Pierce lost today's opening round playoff game to Spokane, 1-0.
The loss ends the Raiders' quest for a third trip to the Northwest Athletic Conference's Final Four at the StarfireSoccer Complex (in Tukwila, WA), in the past four years. The Raiders finished in third place in the West Region with a league record of 4-5-3, and 5-8-4 overall. The lone goal of the contest came in the 34th minute by Spokane's Brennan Murphy, on a short pass in front of the goal by Bum Cho. The balance of the contest was test of defenses, as both teams could only manage 3 shots apiece on goal for the afternoon.
Despite the loss, the future looks bright for Pierce, as the Raiders lose just 5 sophomores going into next season; Brian Lampert, Rogelio Hernandez, Jordan Neuman, Kolin Springs, and Daniel Stevenson. "This is a great group of young men," said Head Coach Luke Helling-Christy. "They were a pleasure to work with at practice every day, and did the little things to get us better as we progressed through the season."
In the past three years, the Raider Men's Soccer team has taken on this challenge, and been hugely successful, coming away with three first-round 'upset' victories against higher ranked opponents. This year the challenge presented by the Sasquatch of Spokane Community College was just a bit more than the Raiders could overcome. Pierce lost today's opening round playoff game to Spokane, 1-0.
The loss ends the Raiders' quest for a third trip to the Northwest Athletic Conference's Final Four at the StarfireSoccer Complex (in Tukwila, WA), in the past four years. The Raiders finished in third place in the West Region with a league record of 4-5-3, and 5-8-4 overall. The lone goal of the contest came in the 34th minute by Spokane's Brennan Murphy, on a short pass in front of the goal by Bum Cho. The balance of the contest was test of defenses, as both teams could only manage 3 shots apiece on goal for the afternoon.
Despite the loss, the future looks bright for Pierce, as the Raiders lose just 5 sophomores going into next season; Brian Lampert, Rogelio Hernandez, Jordan Neuman, Kolin Springs, and Daniel Stevenson. "This is a great group of young men," said Head Coach Luke Helling-Christy. "They were a pleasure to work with at practice every day, and did the little things to get us better as we progressed through the season."