TACOMA, Wash. --- Linfield men's soccer (1-8-1, 1-5-1 NWC) found their stride on offense but were unable to slow the scoring from Pacific Lutheran (6-3-1, 5-0-1 NWC), falling 5-3 on Sunday afternoon.
The Lutes jumped ahead quickly, taking advantage of its chances in the opening half. The Lutes' struck first in the 17th minute, taking an early 1-0 lead. They doubled their advantage seven minutes later, then added a third goal in the 27th minute, giving PLU an early 3-0 lead.
Despite the deficit, Linfield stayed composed and found rhythm late in the half. Forward
Sam Haynes and midfielder
Jaren Nishikawa both forced saves from Lute goalkeeper, while defender
Aedan Carroll and goalkeeper
Jacob Toves helped stabilize the back line against a Pacific Lutheran offense that launched 17 first-half shots.
The Wildcats came out of the halftime break and quickly turned the match on its head. Linfield broke through in the 54th minute when midfielder
Tate Bliss scored his first goal of the season, finishing a setup from forward
Caleb Ishizaka to cut the deficit to 3-1.
Just over three minutes later, Linfield struck again. Defender
Nick Reggiani found
Ross Vargo near the top of the box, and Vargo buried the shot to make it 3-2. Then, only 74 seconds later, Vargo delivered once more, this time assisted by Nishikawa, leveling the contest at 3-3 just 11-minutes into the second half.
With momentum squarely on Linfield's side, Pacific Lutheran managed to regain control in the 61st minute converting a penalty kick to push the Lutes ahead 4-3. Despite strong defensive efforts from Carroll,
Derek Rowe, and goalkeeper Toves—who finished with 12 saves, six in each half—the Lutes added an insurance goal in the 75th minute, leading to the 5-3 final on Sunday.
The 'Cats managed a season-high 15 total shots, with eight on-target. Nishikawa led the way with three attempts, while Vargo, Rowe, and Ishizaka took two a-piece. Toves recorded a personal best 12 saves on 29 total shots faced in the match.
Men's soccer hopes to rebound against Yamhill rival George Fox next Saturday at 2:45 p.m. at home.
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