Trojans Draw With No. 5 Lancers; Season Ends in Shootout

Trojans Draw With No. 5 Lancers; Season Ends in Shootout
November 4, 2023

WINONA LAKE, Ind. – The seventh-seeded Taylor men's soccer team took the second-seeded, No. 5-ranked Grace Lancers to the second round of shootouts in a Crossroads League Tournament quarterfinals match Saturday evening, but it did not complete the upset as Grace persevered on penalty kicks, going a perfect 10-for-10, thus ending TU's season.

A scoreless 110 minutes of soccer were played in Winona Lake, Ind. – a full 90 minutes of regulation plus two 10-minute overtime periods – as the Trojans put up an incredible fight in their upset bid to prolong their season.

Caleb Ballard took the game's first shot and shot on goal eight minutes in as Taylor showed its preparedness in the early stages of the match. The Lancers (13-3-2, 7-1-1 CL) then mostly controlled possession throughout the remainder of the first half, but never landed a shot on frame in the opening 45 minutes as TU's defense held up strong.

In the second period, Brock Carpenter was able to land two shots on goal, including one shortly after a Justin Devlin corner kick, but to no avail as the match remained scoreless. Sam Spiegel was excellent throughout the half, saving five shots as TU successfully defended a host of attacks by the Lancers to send the match to overtime.

A relatively evenly played first overtime period ended with a corner kick for Taylor, but the Trojans did not register a shot as the match went to a second overtime, still tied 0-0. Spiegel added a save in the second and final overtime period to put him at six saves for the match, as the two teams headed to a penalty-kick shootout.

Both the Lancers and the Trojans netted their first nine kicks, but Grace ended it with a made kick and a save in the 10th series of PKs to advance to the CLT Semifinals.

Carpenter's two shots on goal led TU for the match, as Ballard recorded the other two shot attempts for the Trojans.

Taylor (5-11-2, 2-6-1 CL) concludes the 2023 season two wins shy of 350 in the history of its program, while head coach Gary Ross wrapped up his 20th season with the Trojans Saturday night.