Sagehen Men’s Soccer Drops Colorado College, St. Thomas

By Ezekiel Pfeifer
Sports Associate

The Pomona-Pitzer men’s soccer team remained undefeated after two victories this weekend over St. Thomas of Minnesota and Colorado College. The 3-1 victory over St. Thomas on Saturday saw seniors Netza Bravo '04 and Matt Lee-Ashley '04 making significant contributions, each scoring a goal, while the low scoring 1-0 win over Colorado College was secured by a single goal by Lee-Ashley.

Saturday’s game against St. Thomas started with a goal for the opposition, making the score 0-1 in a hurry. However, the rallying Sagehens soon tied the score with a goal from midfielder Bravo to make it 1-1 at halftime. In the second half, the Sagehens took control of the game with the go-ahead goal by Lee-Ashley and an insurance goal by Aron Mohan '06 to secure the 3-1 victory.

The subsequent game at Colorado College was a little more tense for the Sagehens, their first goal not coming until the 33 minute mark, a result of a corner kick scramble. The Bravo and Lee-Ashley duo shined in this game, as they did against St. Thomas the day before: Bravo assisted Ashley in his score to put the Hens up 1-0. Afterward, Pomona-Pitzer never looked back, due to fantastic play in the goal by sophomore Dan Bendett, who made 19 saves over the course of the game. This statistic is all the more impressive in light of the fact that Colorado College out shot the Hens, 19-10.

Both games over the weekend were played in Colorado, giving the soccer team an exciting opportunity to travel out of state for a pair of away games. Given the distance of the trip and the closeness of the two games in time, coming away with two victories was a fantastic achievement. In addition, the Sagehens extended their winning streak to four, dating to the first game of the season.

This pair of victories brings the Pomona-Pitzer men’s soccer record this year to 4-0, a significant improvement on the records of the past two years, when they started 2-2, in 2002, and 1-3, in 2001. This year's unbeaten record brings high hopes for the remainder of the season for the Sagehens, who are largely represented this year by upperclassmen. Seven seniors anchor the Sagehen lineup, along with four juniors, and their experience has been an important component of the team's early success.

Next up for the Pomona-Pitzer soccer team is a home game against Christian Heritage on Wednesday. The Sagehens will be looking to extend their winning streak to five games and stay undefeated for the season.