Bethel Men’s Soccer Bounces Back with Shutout Victory over Trojans
South Bend, Ind. – After the Bethel men’s soccer match was moved from Morey Field to the Indiana Invaders Soccer Complex earlier in the afternoon due to concerns over player safety from the condition of the rain-soaked field, the Pilots responded by posting a 2-0 shutout over Taylor in Crossroads League action on Wednesday night. The Pilots improve to 8-3-2 overall and 2-1-1 in the Crossroads League with five matches remaining until postseason play begins.
After a heart-breaking defeat to Marian on Saturday, in which they gave up two goals in the match’s final five minutes to lose 2-1, the Pilots bounced back with an impressive win on Philip Keller’s third shutout victory of the season.
The defenses shone in the first period as the teams combined for six shots, only two on goal, in a back-and-forth affair, as Keller turned away the Trojans in the 43rd minute to keep a scoreless sheet heading into intermission.
The offense picked up in the second half as Finn Luben put a shot on goal in the 49th minute and Keller denied the Trojans in the 58th minute. After a Trojan foul gave the Pilots a free kick, Jose Barquin drilled one past the Trojans goal keeper to put the Pilots on the board in the 65th minute to go up 1-0. Just 9 minutes later and another Trojan foul, Samuel Biek found the back of the net on the ensuing free kick to extend the Pilot lead to 2-0 in the 74th minute.
Keller made back-to-back saves in the final minute of regulation to preserve the shutout victory. The Pilots were outshot by Taylor 8-4 in the match but capitalized on the free kicks in the second half to gain momentum heading into Saturday’s rivalry match.
The Pilots hit the road for a pivotal Crossroads League clash against Indiana Wesleyan in Marion, slated for a 7:00 pm kick-off.
