The men’s soccer team heads into their fourth conference game of the season on Wednesday, October 15 at 7 p.m at home against Point Loma. The team came into conference play with a lot of momentum from a dominant pre-season. They rode this momentum to their first conference win of the season against Jessup University on Oct. 2 where they won 5-0. During pre-season, the team earned PacWest team of the week honors on Sept. 23 and defeated well-known rivals Azusa Pacific University (APU) on Sept. 27. The team has a lot to celebrate and look forward to in the 2025 season.
The PacWest Team of the Week award recognizes NCAA Division II athletes and teams who demonstrate outstanding performance in their games that week. Players mentioned how it boosts morale when they are recognized for their hard work.
“It means the world. The guys have been working so so hard, not only on the field, but off the field,” graduate student Christian leadership and ministry major Jackson Finn said. “We’ve all been together from day one, so it’s cool to see us get rewarded a little bit for some of our hard work. We have a lot to do, but it’s good to see some success.”
On Saturday Sept. 27, the team won 1-0 against APU, but this game had more weight than a usual rivalry game would. Next school year APU is stepping down to Division III for the return of football and will be competing in the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC.) This was the last time that the team would host their longstanding rivals, and they made sure it was memorable.
“Going into it, there was already a lot of energy, a lot of adrenaline. We were ready to go, “ Finn said. “We were also told that this was the last time we would play Azusa at home before Azusa leaves the division. So we had something to prove for sure.”
The game’s winning goal was a penalty kick by junior psychology major Brennan Furlan. The penalty kick was earned by sophomore Bible, theology and ministry major Ryan Ellsworth.
Freshman engineering major Parker Vititoe described the win as “impactful” not only for the team but also for the student body.
“It was a meaningful game, every game is meaningful, but this one had a little more meaning. So we definitely had a lot more fire coming into this game that we carried on,” Vititoe said. “I think everyone was super happy that we were able to make an impactful win.”
After their first conference win of the season the team has been unsuccessful in maintaining a winning streak. Their record stands at 4-4-3 overall, and 1-2-1 for conference games.
“I think our mindset is just focusing on the game at hand. We’re never looking too far ahead, just what’s our next match,” Finn said. “I think that if we can do the little things right and just go one game at a time, the overall success will come.”
To create excitement and boost school spirit, they will be giving away Biola beanies to students arriving early to show their support at the next home game.
