By: Cody Wright
SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth men's soccer will play a split schedule this week with a home match against Whitman on Wednesday at 3:00pm before heading to Oregon to play Linfield on Sunday at 2:45pm.
Check the Whitworth men's soccer schedule for live links to follow the action.
The Pirates: The Pirates (1-1-1) split a pair of matches in their opening weekend of Northwest Conference play.
On Saturday, the Pirates played to a 2-2 draw with Willamette. Whitworth played a strong first half and broke through in the first minute of the second with a goal from Dominic Gusman. Later in the half, Willamette answered to tie the match at one. Ben Hippauf found the back of the net for his first goal of the season in the 80th minute, but again the Bearcats answered. Aiden Chase made four saves in net and the Pirates had a 15-13 advantage in shots.
The Bucs earned their first win of the season on Sunday with a 1-0 victory over Pacific (Ore.). In the 41st minute, Gusman crossed the ball to the box and Jordan Voigt flicked it to Connor Bly who fired a shot to the top right corner of the net for the go-ahead goal. Aiden Chase made two huge saves in the second half to hold the lead, including a diving save to his left to stop a header from the middle of the box in the final minute of play. Whitworth outshot the Bearcats 13-6 and Chase finished with three saves in the shutout effort.
The Opponents: Whitman travels to Spokane with a 3-0-3 overall record and 2-0 mark in the NWC. The Blues are coming off a pair of 2-0 wins over both Pacific and Willamette last weekend. Whitman has scored 12 goals this season, tied at the top of the conference. First-year William Miranda-Ortiz leads the team with three goals and senior Lucas McAllister has two goals and two assists. Junior Niclas Isensee, who was named NWC men's soccer defensive Student-Athlete of the Week, has a .862 save percentage in five matches played. Whitworth and Whitman split results in a pair of matchups last season.
Linfield, who had no games last weekend, is 0-6 so far this season and dropped both its first NWC matchups. The Wildcats fell 1-0 to Pacific on September 12th and 2-1 to Willamette on September 14th. They will host Whitman on Saturday before a matchup with Whitworth on Sunday. Opponents have outscored Linfield 20-2 this season and average 6.3 shots per game. Senior Evan Stafford and freshman Oliver Blanchard have scored the pair of Wildcat goals. Sophomore Jacob Toves has made six starts at goalkeeper with a .457 save percentage. Whitworth currently holds an eight-match winning streak over Linfield, including a pair of 2-0 wins last season.
Watch on FloCollege: Like the rest of the Northwest Conference, Whitworth's home athletic events will be steamed through FloCollege in 2025-26. Fans can sign up to watch Pirate sports on the FloCollege portal. Registration is $120 for an annual subscription or $20 per month. Those who register with a .edu email address get a significant discount.
The Coach: Kevin Moon became the Pirates' head coach in 2023 and has a 23-12-8 record heading into his third season at the helm. 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 four 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. Moon returned as an assistant coach with the women's program from 2010 through 2015 under both Hagerotts – Damon and Jael. He was back with the Pirate men under Morgan Cathey in 2018 and 2019.
He also has significant coaching experience in the Inland Northwest. Kevin has a USSF National A License and was an ODP Washington Staff Coach from 2008-10. He was also a 2014 ODP Idaho Staff Coach.
Coming up: Whitworth will head to Oregon to visit George Fox on October 4th and Lewis & Clark on October 5th.
