Men’s soccer finishes at semi-final of MWC Tournament

Elie Galvin

The LU men’s soccer team ended their season last weekend. They lost in the Midwest Conference Tournament semi-finals to the Beloit College Buccaneers 4-0. This is the second consecutive year that Lawrence has made the post-season tournament and lost in the semi-finals. They lost to Ripon College last year.

Jackson Wilkins of Beloit scored in the 13th minute to put the Bucs up on the board. Marc Robinson of Beloit scored in the 34th minute and again with just a minute left before halftime to give Beloit a 3-0 advantage going into the second half. The Vikings were unable to come back while Beloit’s Anthony Racine added the fourth the final goal in the 70th minute of the match. Overall, Beloit dominated with a 13-5 shot ratio.

Reflecting on the game, junior defender Colin Potts commented, “We came out and played hard, but everything was a bit off. Everyone’s touches were just a tad slow, and Beloit came out strong and ready to play. In the end, we gave up some sloppy goals, and that downed us.”

The Vikings end the season with a 7-10-1 record. After starting off the season with six straight losses, they fought back and won some important conference games in the regular season to finish in second in the Midwest Conference. Some of the notable wins include overtime victories over the Grinnell College Pioneers and the Beloit College Buccaneers and a close, solid home win against rival St. Norbert College Green Knights.

Looking to next year, Lawrence will lose two great players to graduation, seniors Vince Butitta and Stephen Exarhos. On the bright side, the Vikings will return a significant number of players for next season.

Potts added, “We had a great season after overcoming a shaky start, we took the next step and finished second in conference this year, and we’ll be ready to take it all next year.”