SPOKANE, Wash. – The Whitworth men's soccer team heads to Atlanta, Georgia this weekend for a pair of NCAA Division III non-conference matches against schools picked to win their respective conferences. The Pirates take on Covenant on Saturday and Oglethorpe on Sunday. Both contests will start at 1:00 PM (EDT) / 10:00 AM (PDT) and both will take place at Oglethorpe.
Check the Whitworth men's soccer schedule for live links to follow the action.
The Pirates: Whitworth breezed to a 7-1 win over Walla Walla University in the season opener on September 1st. The Pirates only led 2-1 at the half despite outshooting the Wolves 19-3. The domination continued into the second half with a 5-0 line score, thanks to a 25-0 shot advantage. Cole Friesen scored a pair of goals in his Whitworth debut, while Dominic Gusman had a goal and an assist, as did Jordan Voigt.
The Pirates played to a 2-2 tie with Carroll College on September 4th. Whitworth took a 1-0 lead in the first half and a 2-1 lead in the second, but could not hold off the Saints. The Pirates led 23-9 in shots, including a 12-5 advantage in shots on goal. Gusman scored the first goal for the Pirates, while Friesen had the second.
Blistering Start: Cole Friesen, a first-year forward from Chula Vista, California, had the best offensive start to a Whitworth career in recent memory, scoring three goals over his first two matches. He was a two-time first team All-Metro-Mesa League honoree at Eastlake HS.
Dynamic Duo: Beckett Arthur and Dominic Gusman became the most dynamic scoring pair in the Northwest Conference last season. Arthur led the league in goals (11) and in total points (23). Gusman tied for second in goals (7), finished fourth in points (19, including five assists) and tied for the lead in game-winning goals (4). Each was named the Northwest Conference's Offensive Student-Athlete of the Week once last season – Gusman on September 20th and Arthur on October 4th – and both claimed first team All-NWC recognition. The conference coaches selected Arthur as the 2021 NWC Freshman of the Year.
The pair are picking up where they left off. Gusman has two goals and an assist in two matches, while Arthur has a pair of assists.
The Opponents: Covenant College is also off to a 1-0-1 start. Last weekend the Scots played to a 3-3 draw with Emory on the Eagles' home field and they defeated Oglethorpe 2-1 at Emory. Covenant is coming off a 12-4-4 season, including a USA South Conference title. The Scots made the NCAA Division III tournament, where they fell to top-ranked Washington and Lee in the second round by a single goal. Senior forward Mercer Stout was a first team All-USA South selection in 2021 after he finished with nine goals and ten assists. Covenant is the heavy favorite in 2022 in a new league, the Collegiate Conference of the South. The Scots and Pirates have played once – in the 2014 NCAA Division III tournament and Whitworth escaped with a 1-0 first round victory.
Oglethorpe University is coming off an 8-7-1 season and a regular season title in the Southern Athletic Association with a 6-0-1 mark. However, the Stormy Patrels lost in the conference tournament championship and did not make the NCAA Division III playoffs. Oglethorpe is off to a 0-1-1 record this season. Just prior to their loss to Covenant, the Stormy Patrels drew 1-1 with Illinois Wesleyan. Sophomore center back Hayden Binfield was the 2021 SAA Defensive Player of the Year and the 2021 SAA Newcomer of the Year. Whitworth and Oglethorpe have not played in men's soccer.
The Coach: Jeremy Payne, a talented and highly accomplished young coach, is in his third season as men's soccer coach at Whitworth University in 2022.
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 those three seasons.
Coming up: Whitworth will open Northwest Conference play on September 17-18 at home against Pacific (Ore.) and George Fox.
