TACOMA, Wash. – When Pacific Lutheran junior Craig Johnson placed the ball for a free kick just outside of the 18-yard box Saturday, his teammate Trevor Thompson came over and gave him a pep talk.
Thompson told Johnson he's never seen him miss a free kick from that close and to have confidence.
Johnson made sure his teammate has still never seen him miss a kick from that close, drilling the ball into the lower left corner to give the Lutes a 1-0 victory against Puget Sound in Northwest Conference action.
"Honestly, I just felt confident," Johnson said. "I told myself I was going to take it and score and I was fortunate enough to get it done today."
The victory puts the Lutes (17-3 overall, 11-3 NWC) in prime position to earn an NCAA Division III national tournament berth Monday when the field is set. They came into the game ranked No. 2 in the region and while the Northwest Conference winner earns an automatic berth, the Lutes are a point behind Willamette and will need to be selected by the committee to get in.
"It was definitely a frustrating game with so many chances that we didn't convert," Johnson said. "But this is the type of game you play for. To have the opportunity to hopefully and likely send ourselves to the national tournament.
"It couldn't have been a better day."
Johnson's 13th goal of the season came in the 79th minute and was set up when Cris Lozano was chopped down just outside the box by UPS goalkeeper Ryan Saunders, who was awarded a yellow card in the process.
Johnson set the ball down on the slick grass, spinning it to get just right. Thompson then came over for a few words.
"He came up to me and said, 'You don't miss these. You score these. I've never seen you miss one of these,'" Johnson said. "I had that mindset going."
The Lutes defense still had to see the game out and goalkeeper Nicholas Gaston made sure of that, snaring a great Loggers (8-6-5, 4-6-3) chance in the final 30 seconds to seal the win.
"He is the best goalkeeper in the league by far in my opinion," PLU coach John Yorke said. "When he has to make saves like that he can make them and he has been like that his whole three years he's been here."
Gaston made six saves in the game, while the Lutes out-shot the Loggers 19-14 including 10-6 on goal.
"I'm really happy with how they played," Yorke said. "UPS is a great team and they are really tough to beat at their place. I thought they played really well and made it difficult for us.
"It was a good college soccer game between two rivals. I was really happy with our guys."
The Lutes wrap up the regular season on a four-game winning streak and will find out at 10:30 a.m. Monday whether they will be going back to the national tournament.
But it wouldn't have been possible without Johnson's heroics.
"It was a great shot," Yorke said. "We were over on the sidelines saying get ready to celebrate. Craig is a big-time player and that was a big-time moment and he will do big-time things.
"We almost expected him to score based on where it was and how he hits the ball."
Which is something more than just Thompson knows now.
