WSU Men's Soccer Club are NCCSC Champions
27 Oct 2008
The WSU Men's Soccer Club are the 2008 Northern Collegiate Club Soccer Conference Champions! The Cougars traveled to Eastern Washington University this past weekend for the conference tournament that included the host EWU, Gonzaga University, and Central Washington University.
The Cougars first took on EWU which had their home crowd behind them to try to pull off the upset. But Cougar forward Sirak Berhe had the performance of the year by scoring three goals and gave the Cougars a 3-0 lead. EWU did not stop fighting and with the Cougar starters resting off the field, EWU scored twice late in the game to end the game 3-2.
The Cougars finally took on Gonzaga for the championship game after Gonzaga beat CWU in the other semi-final. Rashid Ghbein took a free kick from 20 yards out and smacked it in the back of the net to get the Cougars up 1-0 early in the game. The rest of the first half was back and forth soccer with pressure from both sides. Cougar Goalkeeper Ryan Wallace took some big hits protecting the goal and suffered a concussion when a Gonzaga player elbowed him in the back of the head and landed awkwardly. Backup goalkeeper Joe Stuckrath came in but Wallace came back into the game minutes later.
The second half was much of the same with strong attacks coming from both sides but neither team could get get one in the net. That was until Cougar freshman Blake Ambrose took on the Bulldog defense, got past two defenders and crossed the ball into the middle where captain Luis Sanchez took a half-volley shot and scored the Cougar’s second goal.
The second goal took steam off the Bulldogs and with the Cougar back line made up of Brandt Lyse, Brett Taylor, and Reggie Orozco, playing their consistent defense, they were not a big threat afterwards. The Cougars, on the other hand, finished the game strong when freshman Michael Rogstad made a great run and put the ball in the net for a commanding 3-0 lead late in the game.
The final whistle blew and the Cougars were awarded the NCCSC trophy and $1000 prize money. This is WSU’s second conference championship in the last three years. The Cougars will now prepare for their spring season and plan to participate in a big tournament outside the state.
For more information on the Men’s Soccer team visit menssoccer.wsu.edu.
