Men’s soccer played their final game of the season against Dominican University on a Saturday evening at Al Barbour Field. The match took off quickly for junior forward Leo Thompson as he scored three goals to help the Eagles grab their final win of the season by a score of 3-1.

Midway through the first half, Thompson led Biola by scoring two goals, back-to-back. The first goal came on an assist by freshman midfielder Gio Passarelli, marking his first of the season. Less than 10 minutes later, Thompson scored a second goal for the Eagles with junior forward Lorenzo Macias collecting his first assist.

Just over one minute into the second half, the Eagles scored their final goal by free kick after a foul by the Penguins. Thompson scored his third goal of the night, recording his 11th goal of the season, and first hat trick of the year. The Penguins looked to catch up to the Eagles by scoring their only goal but continued to fall short. The match ended with a final score of 3-1.   

“I’m disappointed with how we finished,” Thompson said. “I really wanted to go to nationals but I know next year we’ll be a lot stronger.”

Sophomore goalkeeper Alex Muir recorded four saves in the game and finished the season 2-1. Junior goalkeeper Luis Rodriguez led the team with 41 saves overall and finished the season with a record of 6-7-2. Senior midfielder Kousei Mattox led the team with four assists this season.

Head coach Todd Elkins reflected on the Eagles’ season goals and achievements.

“My goal the last two seasons, this one included, was to be top half of the conference, which meant top seven last year, which meant top six this year and we were that both times,” Elkins said. “In both cases, we did what I thought still was a challenging goal but an attainable one: to be in the top half.”

The Eagles’ final win placed them fifth in the PacWest conference at 6-4-1 and 8-8-2 overall.