After a nail-biting overtime, the final score shines over the celebratory Biola men as Wesleyan publicly expresses their despair on September 6. | Kalli Thommen/THE CHIMES
Wednesday night marked the beginning of the fall sports season as both men’s and women’s soccer defeated Northwest University WA at Al Barbour Field.
Senior midfielder Victoria Dalla Zanna got things going for the women in the 24th minute when she buried a penalty kick in the back of the net. The BU Eagles controlled most of the possession in the first half, keeping the ball primarily in their offensive third.
Despite an overwhelming stat line at halftime with Biola leading in shots 17-4, Northwest wasn’t finished yet. In the 55th minute, Biola sophomore goalkeeper Marina Rodriguez came up with a huge save, deflecting a shot out wide. Unfortunately, it was all for naught, as Tatyana Raveles blasted one from just outside the box to draw Northwest even.
The equalizer wouldn’t stand for long though. Following a few rising tensions resulting in yellow cards shown to NU’s Micah Wenzel and sophomore midfielder Amanda Otto, Biola found the spark it needed to take the lead. Junior forward Miranda Starbeck slotted a ball up the middle and found freshman forward Taylor Venegas for her first goal as an Eagle. Energized by the go-ahead score and gaining momentum, senior forward Chrissy King put the game out of reach with a breakaway goal.
Biola’s 3-1 victory was a product of huge offensive numbers. The Eagles finished the game with 29 shots and 15 shots on goal.
For the men, the pace of the game proved much different than that of the ladies. Much of the first half was back and forth between Biola and Northwest, with very little offensive excitement. The defensive lines held strong against attacks from both teams, and for awhile, it appeared this game would go to a nil-nil draw.
Daniel Chew changed all that. The senior forward entered the game at the 65 minute mark and did not disappoint. Chew scored in the 72nd minute off of a breakaway. Seven minutes later, he put away his second goal of the game, giving Biola a 2-0 lead. Northwest claimed one back less than a minute later thanks to a Mackenzie Samuelsen header off a corner kick. Northwest continued to press for the final 10 minutes, but ultimately Chew’s brace proved sufficient as the final whistle blew with Biola ahead 2-1.
Biola outshot Northwest 15-6 and had twice as many shots on goal as the visitors.
Both teams will take on Cal State University Los Angeles in scrimmage games this Saturday. From there, the women have a week off before heading to Montana for a two-game tournament. The men return home to take on longtime rivals Azusa Pacific University on Tuesday the 27th.
