Box Score By Michael Wells
Sports Information Director
WHITTIER — Sometimes a bad bounce is all that it takes.
The Occidental College men's soccer team was the victim of that on Wednesday night in a 2-1 loss at Whittier.
With the score tied 1-1 in the 53rd minute, a Poets' cross bounced off a Douglas Pentland's (Corvallis, Ore.) shin guard, as he slid to intercept the pass, deflecting the ball into a vacant net for the deciding goal. Oxy goalkeeper Ian Agrimis (Portland, Ore.) had left his line to punch out the cross.
Other than that, the game was even with both teams scoring in the first half.
After a cross into the Tigers' box, Whittier's Brian Russell found the ball at his feet and buried the first goal of the match in the 3rd minute.
Just before halftime, The Tigers (2-2, 1-2 SCIAC) evened the score.
Oxy's Connor Freeman (Mercer Island, Wash.) drew a penalty when he was fouled inside the box on a ball played in from around midfield by Reid Sakamoto (Honolulu). Then Sakamoto, a senior captain, stepped up to the dot and scored a soft line drive to the right side of the net, with Whittier goalie David Diaz diving right. It was the second of Oxy's five goals this season scored on a penalty kick.
The Tigers had more opportunities than Whittier in the first half. Oxy had seven shots, to Whittier's four, and three corners to Whittier's one.
In the second half the Poets owned more chances, but Oxy had a few good looks, maybe the best by last week's hero Daniel Watson (San Francisoco).
Watson, who was named the SCIAC Male Student-Athlete of the Week after scoring the game-winning goal against No. 15 Claremont-Mudd-Scripps on Saturday, missed a shot from inside the right corner of the Poets box, just wide.
Oxy looks to get back to .500 in SCIAC play at Caltech on Saturday at 4 p.m.
