SPOKANE, Wash. – A Battle of Whits will take place in Walla Walla on Saturday as Whitworth travels to play at Whitman in a renewal of a competitive Northwest Conference men's soccer rivalry. The match will start at 2:30 pm.
Check the Whitworth men's soccer schedule for live links to follow the action. According Whitman's outdoor spectator policy, masks are strongly recommended for fans at the event.
The Pirates: Whitworth (5-4-1, 4-2 NWC) played well in home victories over Pacific (Ore.) and George Fox last weekend.
The Pirates got a pair of goals early in the second half to defeat visiting Pacific 2-0 on Saturday. Dominic Gusman got Whitworth on the board in the 46th minute from a cross by Christian Pumpelly. Beckett Arthur doubled the lead in the 52nd minute, thanks to an assist by Liam McGehee. The Pirates dominated from the start with 66% of possession and a 17-8 advantage in shots. Andrew Wolotira only had to make one save for his first shutout in goal as a Pirate.
Whitworth posted a second straight dominating win with its 4-1 victory over George Fox on Sunday. Arthur scored two more goals, while Gusman had a goal and an assist. Ethan Kem scored his first goal of the season for the final Pirate tally just after halftime, off an assist by Jose Bautista. Whitworth outshot George Fox 14-10, including a 12-8 edge in shots on-goal. Wolotira and Joshua Hill each made three saves for the Bucs.
Dynamic Duo: Beckett Arthur and Dominic Gusman have become the most dynamic scoring pair in the Northwest Conference this season. Arthur leads the league in goals (9) and in total points (18). Gusman is second in goals (7), tied for the lead with Arthur in points (18, including four assists) and leads in game-winning goals (4). Each has been named the Northwest Conference's Offensive Student-Athlete of the Week once this season – Gusman on September 20th and Arthur on October 4th.
The Opponents: Whitman College comes into Saturday's match 7-3 overall and 3-3 in the NWC. In a surprise, the Blues fell 1-0 at home to George Fox on Saturday, but rebounded to hammer Pacific 5-0 on Sunday. Senior forward Oscar Harding has five goals and seven assists this fall and ranks third in the NWC in total points (17). Whitman swept Whitworth in four closes matches during the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season. The Pirates' last win came in the 2019 season finale.
The Coach: Jeremy Payne, a talented and highly accomplished young coach, enters his second season as men's soccer coach at Whitworth University in 2021.
Payne is a graduate of Messiah College (Pa.), where he was the NSCAA Division III Player of the Year in 2012 and 2014. Following graduation from Messiah, Payne became a graduate assistant coach at Eastern University (St. David's, Pa.) in August of 2015 and served in that role for two seasons before he was promoted to head coach in March of 2017. He led the Eagles to a 42-17-5 record and two Division III tournament appearances over the last three seasons.
Coming up next: Whitworth will open the second half of its Northwest Conference schedule with a road trip to George Fox and Pacific on October 16-17.
