The Eagles suffered yet another 1-0 loss Saturday afternoon, this time against archrival Azusa Pacific University. Biola’s offense couldn’t make up the deficit after a shot grazed the keeper and ricocheted into the goal late in the first half.
Biola’s best chances came from seniors Kennedy Chongo and Phillip Friehe. Both had breakaways but neither could follow through with the opportunities. Chongo’s push came in the 59th minute. He got ahead of the defenders, approached the goal, and beat the keeper with a quick shot. But the shot went wide. Minutes later Friehe got alone upfront, but was stopped by the keeper, losing his chance to even the score.
At the end of the game Biola coach Bryan Kuderman seemed hopeful. He acknowledged that his team had several chances, especially in the second half, but failed to finish. The Eagles drop to sixth place with a GSAC record of 2-2 and an overall record of 4-6-1 for the season.
APU is now in second with a GSAC record of 4-1 and an overall record of 11-2. Compare Biola and APU’s seasons so far.
Match worthy of the long-lasting rivalry
The match was bound to be competitive for the long-time rivals. APU attacked early as Oktay Bulut took the game’s first shot in the seventh minute. But junior keeper Aaron Fenlason was there to stop it. Within minutes, Bulut attacked again. This time the shot went wide. After Biola junior Zach Bautista took a shot that went wide, there was a comical series of six fouls, three on Biola and three on APU. Friehe gave Biola its first real chance to get on the scoreboard in the 23rd minute. Yet, the ball landed in the hands of APU’s keeper.
Azusa’s game winner came in the 33rd minute. Cougar Nathan Nienhuis juggled through the defense and set up a kick. Though Nienhuis only clipped the ball, it nicked Fenlason and bounced into the goal. Before halftime Fenlason stopped APU from scoring another.
Biola unable to convert on opportunities
Towards the beginning of the second half Fenlason made two more great saves that came within a minute of each other. The tension was rising and Biola felt the pressure to keep driving forward. Chongo’s chance came and went. Eagle freshman Dylan Wingrove took a shot that was blocked by APU defenders. And in the 66th and 67th minutes juniors Tony Montalvo and Marco Ruvalcaba had great opportunities that were shut down by the consistent Cougar keeper. As a last try, Biola senior Jacob Ravenscraft scrambled forward in the 84th minute and delivered a shot that was, again, grabbed by the Azusa goalkeeper.
The Eagles have yet to lose by more than one goal, showing that the team’s defense is consistent but the offense is struggling.
