BELTON, Texas – The Pacific Lutheran men's soccer team set a program record for wins and matched the deepest run in the NCAA Division III National Tournament.
On Sunday, though, the Lutes (18-4 overall) ran into a tremendous St. Thomas team, falling 2-0 on the campus of Mary Hardin-Baylor.
"St. Thomas was a good team and very aggressive; they made the game hard," PLU coach John Yorke said. "It took us a little bit to adjust to the style of it and once we did, we got that unfortunate red card."
The Lutes gave up a goal in the 25th minute to Taty Aleman, though the defense solidified and the teams went into halftime with the same score.
With PLU pushing forward looking for a tying goal, defender Alex White fouled a St. Thomas player and the center referee drew a red card saying White was the last defender on a goal-scoring opportunity.
Gabe Salako immediately capitalized, scoring off a free-kick rebound just outside of the box. Just like that it was 2-0 and the Lutes couldn't overcome that very tall mountain.
"At that point, we had some good run of play and we were optimistic," said Yorke of his team's play before the red card. "The red card didn't kill that off, but it made it a lot more difficult. I thought maybe we had our best stretch of the game in those moments following that.
"I'm really proud of the guys. They were resilient all year and that continued tonight."
It was a chippy match throughout with PLU being handed six yellow cards and the red card, while St. Thomas was booked for three yellows.
The Lutes struggled to get forward consistently, managing four shots including one on goal. St. Thomas finished with 17 shots including 10 on goal.
Nicholas Gaston did everything he could in goal for the Lutes, finishing with eight saves.
Trevor Thompson had the lone shot on goal for the Lutes, while Cole Dobson, Cris Lozano and Sammy Tafolla all added shots off target.
"I could not have asked for more from our group of seniors," Yorke said. "One of the things we talked about was the legacy they leave with. The program is in a better place than where they found it.
"I'm really proud of those guys."
