By: Cody Wright
SPOKANE, Wash. – The Whitworth men's soccer squad will take the field this fall with many new faces after graduating 13 players from a season ago.
After a 12-win season in 2023, the Pirates finished last season with a 10-7-3 overall record and 8-5-3 Northwest Conference mark, good for fourth place. With 21 returners and 12 newcomers on the 2025 roster, head coach Kevin Moon hopes to reach the top spot in the conference for the first time since 2018.
"We placed significant emphasis on each player's technical ability, ensuring it aligned with the style of play we aim to implement this year," said Moon, who is 22-11-7 entering his third season at the helm.
To elevate that technical ability, the Pirates added assistance coach Vito Higgins to the staff as a goalkeeping specialist. Higgins played college soccer at Gonzaga University before competing professionally for the LA Galaxy in 2008 and FC Tucson in 2011. His extensive coaching resume includes serving as a goalkeeper coach or assistant at Gonzaga, North Idaho College, the US Youth Soccer Development Program, FC Tucson, and most recently Spokane Velocity FC.
Moon believes Higgins' involvement will "sharpen our goalkeepers' technical and tactical capabilities, improve their mental resilience and professionalism, deeper our team culture, and expand our program's reach."
Thirteen players graduated from last year's roster, opening the door for new leaders and playmakers to emerge. The team's ability to mesh on and off the field may determine what this group can accomplish.
"The returning players will set the standard for our newcomers, while our new additions will push the level of competitiveness in training—something we believe will translate directly into stronger performances on game day," Moon said.
Jordan Voigt, Hunter Lisowski, and Jackson Eschliman will return in the attacking third of the field. Junior transfers Jonathan Cortes (CC of Spokane) and Noah Whitman (Washington) are primed to make big contributions to a group that will need to replace the goal scoring efforts of three All-Conference players.
Second team All-NWC player Keegan Davis leads the midfield returning group. Jucas Joehnk, Adrian Petrillo, Ralph Borromeo, Ben Hippauf, Liam Bia and Aidan Sanders will each look to make an impact. Freshmen Lucas Diaz and Ryland Crane will add their names to the mix as first-year Pirates.
The defending third is headlined by returning players Reeves Oakman and first-team All-NWC standout Dominic Gusman. Gusman was tied for the team lead in assists (9) and Oakman all led position players in minutes for the Bucs a season ago. Christian Waarvick, and Johnny Finnegan, who each started at least 12 games last season, join six other returning defenders.
Incoming first-year defenders include Jaxsen Teeter, Ethan Bell, Lucas Waarvick, Dominic Schauman, and Christoff Zimmerman.
The Pirates return goalkeepers Aidan Chase and Dax Flanders, while Freshmen Oliver Hart and Henrik Dahlgren will join them in net.
With returners stepping into new roles and newcomers looking to make their mark, Moon has a significant amount of depth to evaluate.
"Players who took the initiative—making the necessary sacrifices to train consistently and compete in live matches over the summer—will have the best chance of earning meaningful minutes this fall," Moon said.
Whitworth will kick off the season with a trip to Honolulu, Hawaii to take on Hawaii Pacific on August 29th and Chaminade on August 31st. The Bucs return to Whitworth Soccer Field to host Carroll College on September 13th in their first home match of the season.
Heading into the first match, Moon knows the success of this team won't be defined by just wins and losses.
"While being competitive and winning games remains a top priority, our team culture will always come first," he said. "Relationships—built through shared experiences, trust, and accountability—are what endure long after the final whistle and ultimately represent the most important part of what we do."
