SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The remarkable season by the Wofford men's soccer team ended on Thursday night with a 1-0 loss to UC Santa Barbara at Harder Stadium in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Gauchos scored the game-winner with seven minutes left in the second half.
Wofford ends the season 12-3-3 overall. Santa Barbara moves to 16-4-2 and advance in the NCAA Tournament to face San Diego on Sunday. The Gauchos outshot the Terriers 15-4 in the second half and had a 16-6 advantage in the game.
In the first half, the Terriers controlled the pace of the game. Wofford had the first shot of the game at 24:47 when Yakov Rubinchik had a shot go high. Off a corner from Branson Hyatt, Nick Schuermann took a shot that was wide at 31:11. The first shot by the Gauchos came at 32:12 by Josue Madueno. With under two minutes to play in the half, Kentrel Owens made a run, but was unable to get a shot off. Wofford had two shots to only one in the first 45 minutes by the Gauchos.
To open the second half, the Gauchos had three corner kicks in the first two minutes and five shots in the first ten minutes as they picked up the intensity. Wofford countered when Wilson Hood took a shot that hit the post at 58:09. Andrew Eppelsheimer had a shot that was saved a minute later off a corner by Branson Hyatt.
The Gauchos kept up the offensive attack with the next six shots. Wilson Hood had a header go wide right at 75:21 off a corner. UC Santa Barbara finally broke through when David Walker scored at 83:49 in the second half. Michael Tetteh crossed the ball to Michael Boxall, who headed it to Walker for a shot from ten yards out. Wofford was able to get one more shot on goal at 87:58 by Yakov Rubinchik, but the Gauchos held on for the win.
For Wofford, Thomas Hunter had three saves and one goal against in goal. Sam Hayden recorded his 15th shutout of the season with two saves. UC Santa Barbara had eight corners to three for Wofford. The Terriers were called for nine fouls, including a yellow card to Nick Schuermann at 83:15, while the Gauchos had seven fouls.
Wofford ends the season with 12 wins, the best mark in school history as a NCAA Division I team. It was the first time the Terriers won the Southern Conference and also the first trip to the NCAA Tournament.