On a cold and rainy October night on Ciber Field, senior Andre Shinyashiki (Sao Paulo, Brazil) netted a brace against Summit League foe Purdue-Fort Wayne to get the win for the No. 5 Pioneers and increase his goals on the season to 21.
The first half was utilized by both teams to evaluate their opponent. Purdue-Fort Wayne almost saw themselves on the scoresheet first; however, it was saved off the upper woodwork in the second minute. After the shot, the Pioneers controlled most of the possession and offense for the rest of the half as the Pioneers tallied five shots and six corners to Purdue-Fort’s one shot. The first half would end scoreless.
Fans who braved out the weather witnessed a wonderful second half from both teams. In the 56th minute, the Pioneers started off the scoring when freshman Stefan DeLeone (Fort Collins, Colo.) stole the ball from a defender and passed it to sophomore Jacob Stensson (Stockholm, Sweden). Stensson sent a through ball from the right side to Shinyashiki waiting at the top of the box where he switched the ball to his left side and buried it into the right corner with his left foot.
In the 73rd minute, redshirt sophomore Will Palmquist (Denver) made an incredible save to his near right side after a charging Purdue-Fort Wayne player shot from 14 yards out. The display from Palmquist and the backline displayed the strength of the group as Purdue-Fort Wayne took seven shots in the half.
As the match began to reach the final minutes, Shinyashiki , in the 88th minute, worked back to get the ball back for the Pioneers. After the tackle by Shinyashiki, sophomore Destan Norman (Fort Collins, Colo.) took the ball and charged down the field where Shinyashiki followed close behind. Norman drew out the three defenders and passed the ball to his left where the wide open Shinyashiki put enough pace behind his shot to get it past the goalkeepers hands. This would secure the win for Pioneers where they stand 10-0-2 on the season.
The Pioneers have had a wonderful season so far as they have kept their undefeated streak alive into October. With six games left in the season, they hope to continue that streak into the Summit League tournament. The Pioneers have exciting news for the program as for the first time in their history, they have been ranked No. 1 in a national poll by Top Drawer Soccer’s weekly poll. The Pioneers will take on the No. 10 Virginia Cavaliers in Charlottesville, Va. on Oct. 8 at 4 p.m. MST.
