Despite a resilient second-half effort that included control over the majority of possession, three shots, and five corner kicks, the Bears never put the ball in the back of the net. With their one goal, Cal Lutheran rode to their first-ever national title, becoming the first unranked team to achieve the feat.
From Saturday’s opening whistle to Sunday’s final tweet, WashU played 180 minutes of top-notch soccer to cruise through Maryville College and Sewanee: The University of the South and earn a spot in the Sweet 16.
For the first time all season, the Bears had conceded a goal, and they quickly found themselves playing from behind. Ultimately, despite a resilient attempt to mount a comeback, they would fall to the No. 6 Yellowjackets 2-1, ending college soccer's best clean-sheet streak and placing their UAA division lead in jeopardy. Just five days after they had been named the best team in the country, the Bears were knocked off their perch and are back to the No. 2 spot in this week's rankings.
“We're exactly where we want to be. We worked pretty hard and played really well against super-talented and very strong opponents. So there were no hard feelings. We're just looking forward to getting back on the field for our next game,” senior goalkeeper Sid Conner said after the weekend’s matches.
This past Sunday, women’s soccer fought its way to a commanding 4-0 victory against Rhodes College to record its second win in three days. The Bears had previously beaten DePauw College 4-0 Friday evening. With these wins, the team improves their season record to 5-0, remaining undefeated.