Trojans Shutout at Wheaton
September 05, 2009
Taylor University and Wheaton College met in a men's soccer game for the first time ever Saturday night on Wheaton's campus. The Thunder posted a shutout of the Trojans by the final margin of 4-0, handing Taylor its fifth straight loss.
With a crowd of over 1,500 people looking on, the host Thunder pounded 34 shots compared to just 11 for Taylor. Wheaton had 11 shots on goal, with Taylor managing just one by Joel Ritz. The freshman led Taylor with four shots in the game.
Taylor went down 2-0 at the half following goals in the 13th minute and 27th minute for Wheaton. The Thunder took 13 first half corner kicks against Taylor's two.
After Wheaton's second goal, neither team cracked the net for another 42 minutes until Wheaton struck again at the 69:32 mark to go up 3-0. It was only three minutes later that Wheaton netted their fourth goal of the night to close out the game's scoring.
Wheaton's Drew Golz led the Thunder with one goal and two assists.
Taylor Sophomore goalkeeper Josh Giuliano played all 90 minutes and recorded 11 saves.
Ranked No. 23 in the NCAA Div. III Men's Soccer Poll, Wheaton marked the fourth opponent in Taylor's last five outings that was either ranked in the Top 25 or receiving votes in the national polls.
"This is the end of a crazy stretch of really difficult games for us," said Taylor head coach Gary Ross. "We've learned a lot about ourselves. It's been a good stretch, and we're using it to make us better."
Taylor (1-5) next travels to Marygrove (Mich.) College on Wednesday, Sept. 9 at 4:00 pm.