WASHINGTON, Pa. – A late second half goal propelled the Chatham Cougars past the Washington & Jefferson College men's soccer team by a 2-1 score in the regular season finale Wednesday afternoon at Alexandre Stadium.
The Presidents (6-8-1, 5-5-1) entered the day with hopes to secure a spot in the Presidents' Athletic Conference Tournament, which begins with the quarterfinals on Saturday (Oct. 31). However, a goal by the Cougars (4-9-4, 3-5-3) in the final 10 minutes denied the Presidents a chance at earning much needed points in the PAC standings. The Presidents finished tied for sixth place but lost out via tiebreaker in qualifying for the six-team tournament.
Gavin Patterson (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) led the way offensively. The freshman tallied his fourth goal of the season with a pair of shots. Five Presidents finished with two shots each.
W&J came out strong and took an early lead in the match. Patterson got the Presidents on the board in the 17th minute, finishing after a pass from senior
Logen Mackey (McDonald, Pa./West Allegheny).
The Cougars responded with an equalizer, as Joseph Davies scored in the 31st minute. The Presidents looked to regain the lead before halftime, as the Red and Black registered three shots over the final 10 minutes, including a pair of goal. However, the Cougars goalie recorded a pair of saves to keep the game even at 1-1 after 45 minutes.
W&J recorded three shots over the first six minutes of the second half but were unable to finish off any of those chances to retake the lead. Chatham seemed to control the momentum of the game from that point, registering five shots and three corner kicks over the next 15 minutes. Bennett Haas put the Cougars ahead for good with the eventual game-winning goal in the 82nd minute of play. The Presidents were able to obtain a late corner kick chance, which produced a shot that went wide right of the goal.
The final stat-sheet reflected a tightly contested match. Both teams finished with 13 shots. Each team placed four shots on goal. However, Chatham finished with a 9-4 advantage in corner kick opportunities.
Sophomore goalkeeper
Logan Joseph (Canonsburg, Pa./Canon-McMillan) made two saves in 90 minutes of work in goal for the Presidents.
While the loss marks the end of the season, the Presidents season was highlighted by a pair of strong showings at home against some of the conference's best. The Presidents' top win of the season came via a 3-1 score over Allegheny, who ultimately earned the league's number two seed in the conference tournament. In an Oct. 3 match that served as W&J's senior day, W&J battled to a hard-fought 2-2 draw with Geneva, a team that earned the number three seed in the conference. Patterson and fellow freshman
Ryan Noel (Reisterstown, Md./McDonogh School) finished as the team's leaders in both goals (4) and points (9).
