Written by Tyler Poe

Saturday, the Biola Eagles men’s soccer team took the field against the San Diego Christian College Hawks. The Eagles, who were fighting for a place in the GSAC playoffs, won the game 2-0.

In a match the team had to win, junior Derek Friehe delivered. “He is doing what he is expected to do,” head coach Bryan Kuderman said after Friehe earned both of Biola’s goals.

The Eagles’ first goal came in the 52nd minute after Friehe was fouled in the penalty box. Senior Brandon Gonzalez converted the penalty kick, putting Biola up 1-0. Only four minutes later, Friehe struck again, this time with his head, putting the Eagles ahead 2-0.

This is not the first time Friehe has made a difference coming off of the bench; he is credited with earning four of the five penalty kicks Biola has earned all season. Also, in their last game against Cal Baptist, Friehe scored the game-winning goal with just 37 seconds left on the clock.

Freshman goalkeeper Aaron Fenlason also came up big, preserving the two-goal lead with three saves on the afternoon. Fenlason earned the first shutout of his collegiate career; he is playing while starting goalkeeper sophomore Tyler Higgins rests an injury.

The Eagles are happy to have such great contributions from their bench and are even happier with the result.

“We went in there to get the result we got,” said Kuderman. “We just wanted to get the win and get back safely.”

No players were significantly injured during the game.

“We lost one player to a Red Card,” Kuderman said, referring to freshman Cody Shelton who was carded after a controversial foul in the box. “That hurts us.”

The win guaranteed the Eagles a match-up with Concordia in the first round of the GSAC playoffs.

“They have the two most special players in the league,” said Kuderman, “one of them was injured the last time we played them. He’s back now.”

The Eagles lost to Concordia at home in overtime 2-1 earlier in the season.

“For us to win it would be an upset,” Kuderman said. “But this is soccer – anyone can beat anyone.”

The Eagles entered the playoffs as the seventh seed with an overall record of 8-6-2 and a league record of 3-5-2.

The women’s team also took the field Saturday against San Diego Christian College. The women were not in contention for a playoff spot, but look to capping off a year filled with improvements on last season and have hopes for the next.

The Eagles finished the season 5-7-3 overall and 1-6-3 in their league. This is an improvement on last season’s 3-11-2 overall record.

“On the surface this season was disappointing, in regards to our record and not making playoffs,” Todd Elkins, first-year head coach, said.

But there are many things to build on for the Lady Eagles.

“We had a meeting to talk about spring practice,” Elkins said, “We wanted to do that while the iron is hot … while the disappointment is fresh.”

Elkins said he has set higher expectations for this spring’s practice.

“We have to work harder than everyone else,” he said.

These expectations are not without merit. The Eagles are only graduating one starter, Brittany Neill. “I believe in this team,” Elkins said. “I’m excited about the future.”