By: Cody Wright
SPOKANE, Wash. – Whitworth men's soccer returns to Spokane this weekend in search of its first Northwest Conference win of the season. The Pirates host George Fox on Saturday and Willamette on Sunday. Both matches will start at noon as the first leg of a men's-women's doubleheader.
Check the Whitworth men's soccer schedule for live links to follow the action.
Watch on FloCollege: All of Whitworth's Northwest Conference athletic events will be streamed through FloCollege in 2026-27. Fans can sign up to watch Pirate sports on the FloCollege portal. Registration is $120 for an annual subscription or $25 per month. Those who register with a .edu email address get a significant discount.
The Pirates: The Pirates (2-5-1, 0-3-1) dropped each of their road conference matches last weekend.
Whitman took down Whitworth 1-0 on Wednesday in the first of two Battle of Whits this season. Kevin Serrano broke a scoreless tie with a goal in the 73rd minute. The Bucs had several opportunities in the attacking third in the final 10 minutes but were unable to even the score. Oliver Hart set a career-high with seven saves at goalkeeper.
On Saturday, the Bucs fell 1-0 at Pacific (Ore.). Whitworth again played strong defensively and only allowed 10 shots in the match, but a goal in the 52nd minute from Trenton Zimmermann put the Boxers in front. Pacific was efficient offensively, putting eight of their shots on net to Whitworth's four. Hart had seven saves in net for the second straight game.
By Committee: The Bucs have shown that anyone on the field is a threat to score, having scored six goals by five different players so far this season. Ralph Borromeo, Jaxsen Teeter, Boden Thomson (2), Lucas Waarvick and Greyson Wheeler have all put the ball in the back of the net.
The Opponents: George Fox heads into this weekend with a 1-5-1 overall record and 1-3-1 NWC record. Last weekend, the Bruins fell 3-0 to Pacific Lutheran and 2-1 to Linfield. GFU has given up 19 goals this season, tied for the most in the conference, proving to be an area that Whitworth can take advantage of. Graduate Zac LeVin leads the team attack with four goals and three assists. Sophomore Josh Vakulenko and senior Chase Nelson have split time at goalkeeper, with Vakulenko posting the better .649 save percentage and 2.60 goals against average in five of seven starts. The Pirates beat the Bruins 1-0 at home and played to a 1-1 draw in Newberg last season.
Willamette is 1-4-1 overall and 1-21 in conference play this season. The Bearcats will host Pacific on Wednesday and visit Whitman on Saturday prior to making the trip to Spokane. Through six games, Willamette has scored six times, good for a 1.167 goals per game that ranks seventh in the NWC. Defensively, the Bearcats allow 1.83 goals per game, good for sixth in the conference. Brenden Pineda leads the team with four goals. Goalkeeper Mikkel Jensen has started all six games and allowed 11 goals with a .676 save percentage. Last season, the Bucs tied 2-2 and fell 5-4 against Willamette.
The Coach: Kevin Moon became the Pirates' head coach in 2023 and has a 31-21-13 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: The Pirates head west to battle Puget Sound on October 10 and Pacific Lutheran on October 11.
