Men's soccer falls to Whittier

ORANGE, Calif. – The Chapman University men's soccer team fell 2-0 to Whittier on Wednesday at Wilson Field. The Panthers (3-2-1, 1-2-1 SCIAC) fired off 21 shots but couldn't find the back of the net in their second consecutive SCIAC loss.

Senior Sam Rudich looked to give Chapman an early lead on the first shot of the match but his well-struck shot hit the far post and was immediately cleared away. The Panthers continued to apply pressure with an 8-2 shot advantage in the first half but didn't find the go-ahead goal.

Rudich and Elliott Braund each fired off five shots to lead the Panther attack while Lorenzo Belassen put two of his three shots on goal.

The second half looked to be going the same way with Chapman holding much of the possession and creating opportunities. However, Jorge Rivas made four of his six saves in the second half to earn the clean sheet. The Panthers outshot the Poets 13-7 in the half.

The Poets found more opportunities in the second half as well as they capitalized on a pair of counter attacks. James Suri scored the first goal for Whittier in the 55th minute after being played behind the Panthers back line. He assisted on the second goal when he played Connor Tait-Mole behind the defense in the 87th minute.

Chapman's best opportunity to even the match came in the 79th minute when the Panthers drew a foul in the box for their third penalty kick of the young season. Rivas came up with the biggest of his four saves to keep his team out in front.

Chapman plays the middle match of a three-match homestand on Sunday at 1 p.m. for a nonconference matchup with Christopher Newport.

by Steven Olveda
Sports Information Director

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