PARKLAND, Wash. – Whitworth began its final road trip of the season with a 2-1 loss to Pacific Lutheran in a Northwest Conference men's soccer match on Saturday in Parkland.
A late penalty kick extended the Lutes' (13-3-3 overall, 12-0-3) winning streak to seven. The Pirates fell to 7-5-4 overall, 7-4-4 in conference play.
Pacific Lutheran struck first in a dominant offensive first half. Yuta Shimazu found Ty Brunner to put the Lutes up in the 30th minute. PLU finished the first frame with a 17-4 shot advantage, six of them on goal.
The Bucs played a stronger second half and held the Lutes to three shots on target. After generating some offensive pressure of their own, Dominic Gusman drew a penalty kick in the 82nd minute and buried it for his ninth goal of the season.
Less than a minute later, Misha Turchaninov returned the favor with a penalty kick of his own to break the short-lived tie. The Lute defense prevented any further Whitworth shot attempts to secure the win.
Lucas Diaz led the Bucs with three shots and two on goal. Gusman and Crane each added a pair for the Whitworth attack. Aiden Chase made a season-high seven saves at goalkeeper.
Shimazu led all playerks with seven shots in the match. Brunner led the Lutes with three shots on goal. Goalkeeper Landon Gordon made four saves at goalkeeper.
The Bucs will close the season on Sunday at Puget Sound.
