With the Beaver’s PAC-12 title hopes gone after tonight’s draw against the University of Washington Huskies, the team now looks forward to potential NCAA Tournament play.
An exhilarating Thursday night matchup against the Huskies to close the PAC-12 season is nothing new for the Oregon State Men’s Soccer program. In the last iteration of the rivalry, both teams did not disappoint. The two teams previous duel ended in a 2-0 Beaver win.
The Beavers opened the scoring only moments after the beginning of the match at just over one minute in when midfielder Arnau Farnos scored his third goal of the season.
Picking the ball up in the midfield, Farnos took the ball inside, finding Defender Fran Cortijo on the left wing. Cortijo quickly passed back to Farnos at the top of the box, freezing the UW defense. Farnos gathered himself and placed a ferocious ball into the right side of the goal.
One goal up and rain pouring down, the Beavers played slick clean football for much of the half. In classic UW fashion, the Huskies were organized to take advantage of counterattack situations giving up potential opportunities to hold the ball in possession.
As the Huskies lied in waiting, the Beavers controlled the ball with ease. The wet natural grass pitch at Paul Lorenz Field gave the Beavers the advantage of moving the ball with added pace.
The quick interchange between defensive midfielders Thomas Bedouret and Pere Belmonte, allowed the Beavers to maintain possession and control for much of the half.
The Huskies pounced in the 41st minute after Beaver defender Nicklaus Lund was late in his recovery on a Husky forward and conceded a foul in his box for a penalty. Washington’s Peter Kingston stepped up to the spot and finished calmly to tie the match.
Seizing the energy boost from their first goal, Husky midfielder Joe Dale took the ball from his half off a Beaver turnover in the 43rd minute. Curling the ball past OSU goalkeeper Luis Castillio, Dale scored a rather impressive individual effort after a rather innocuous loss of possession by the Beavers.
The Beavers would make the most of their last opportunity of the first half to knot the match up at two apiece after Cortijo hit a peach of a free kick past the UW goalkeeper as time expired on the shelf. Cortijo has been a team leader in assists for much of the season however this attempt was his first goal of the campaign.
Both teams exhausted themselves through the match, with nothing to show for their efforts in the second half. The match between the teams concluded in a stalemate at 2-2.
As PAC-12 play concludes, the Beavers finish the season with 17 points in 10 matches. OSU finishes in second place behind the University of California Los Angeles Bruins, and will likely see post-season play.
On Monday, November 13th, the NCAA will announce the bracket for the 2023 College Cup.
If the Beaver’s name is called, the team will most likely pack their bags and begin preparation for a quick turnaround. The first round of the College Cup will be played on November 16th.