SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth men's soccer will hit the road after two weekends at home, and they will be seeking to get back into the win column on Wednesday at Whitman and Sunday at Pacific. Wednesday's match will kick off under the lights at 7 p.m., and Sunday will be at 2:30 as the second half of a men's-women's doubleheader.

Check the Whitworth men's soccer schedule for live links to follow the action.

The Pirates: Whitworth (8-4-2 overall, 6-2-2 NWC) cooled off a bit last weekend as its six-game win streak was snapped on Saturday. The Pirates came into the weekend with hopes of jumping into first place in the conference but came out of the weekend six points behind Pacific Lutheran.

The Pirates were competitive in both matches but came up short of the desired result and will face an uphill battle toward the conference title down the stretch.

Going into last weekend, the Pirates had not trailed since September 23^rd at Willamette and playing with the lead had become somewhat routine. However, the Pirates surrendered early goals in both matches last weekend as they fell behind in the 19^th minute against PLU and the 14^th minute against Puget Sound.

On Saturday, Cole Friesen scored two equalizers as they battled the Lutes for control of the NWC. Friesen found the net in the 27^th and 60^th minute to draw Whitworth back to even, the Pirates nearly had another equalizer trailing 3-2 in the 70^th minute but it was nullified by an offside call.

In Sunday's match, the visiting Loggers struck early and held a 1-0 lead at halftime. Friesen scored his third goal of the weekend in the 46^th minute, yet the Pirates could not find the winner they'd hoped for despite an astounding 24 shots.

Friesen is three goals away from history: Friesen's production around the net has been a major storyline for the Pirates this season, and the headlines kept coming as the sophomore scored three times last weekend to bring his total to 19. Friesen is second in the nation in goals scored while leading the NWC in goals and total points. With six matches to go, Friesen is three goals shy of breaking Whitworth's all-time record for goals in a season, but two would tie it. The current record of 21 goals is held by assistant coach Karl Muelheims who set it in 2015.

The Opponents: Whitman (5-6-3 overall, 5-3-2 NWC) is fourth in the conference, and like Whitworth is coming off a loss to PLU and a draw against Puget Sound. The Blues opened last weekend with a 2-2 draw against UPS and then lost 3-1 on Sunday versus PLU. Whitman ranks third in goals scored (31) but has struggled defensively, allowing the third-most goals (28) in the conference. They are coached by Jose Cedeno who has led the Blues for nine seasons, one of which included an NWC co-championship. On the pitch, Whitman is led by Senior forward Edwin Romero and Sophomore midfielder Lucas McAllister. Romero leads the team in goals (6), shots (29), and points (14), McAllister is second in all three categories but has accounted for two game-winners this season. One of those two has scored in nine of 13 matches this season. The Pirates defeated Whitman 3-2 in their first meeting of the season in Spokane back in September, but a loss Wednesday would likely drop the Pirates into a tie for third place with Whitman.

Pacific (3-6-5 overall, 3-5-2 NWC) is coming off a split last weekend against the NWC's bottom two teams, beating last-place Lewis & Clark 1-0 on Saturday before losing to George Fox 2-0 on Sunday. The Boxers have been an interesting group this year, currently 5^th in the NWC standings with just 11 points. Yet they've had some memorable moments including a 1-1 draw with PLU (a match they led in until the 71^st minute). The Boxers have managed just 14 goals this season but have allowed only 18, which is third in the NWC. Pacific is coached by Brandon Porter who's in his fourth season at the helm. Pacific's keeper is certainly a player to watch, Zach Aderinto leads the NWC in saves (58) and save percentage (.784%) in his 13 starts this year. The Pirates pushed three past Aderinto in the last meeting and will look for more of the same.

The Coach: Kevin Moon is the Pirates' interim head coach in 2023 and perhaps no one more connected to the history of Whitworth men's soccer could have taken on that role.  Moon was a Pirate player from 1988 through 1991, winning three NCIC titles under Whitworth Heritage Gallery Hall of Fame coach Einar Thorarinnson.  Moon served three stints as an assistant coach at Whitworth under several head coaches.  He was an assistant coach for the women's team from 1992 through 1996, when the Pirates won a pair of NCIC titles under Damon Hagerott.  He was an assistant coach for the men under Sean Bushey in 2001 when the Pirates won a conference crown.  

Coming Up: Whitworth will be back at home against Linfield and Willamette on October 28-29.