Photo: Tony Leon/ActionWestPhotography.com

PASADENA, Calif. (Oct. 9, 2021) – The Whittier College men's soccer team got back on the winning track when they picked up a 2-0 road victory at Caltech on Saturday afternoon.

While the Poets got some necessary big plays out of their offensive playmakers, the defense ultimately succeeded in limiting the quality and quantity of opportunities presented to the home team. Junior goalkeeper Teddy Nickerson (Seattle, Wash. / O'Dea) drew the start and held the Beavers off the board with a pair of saves over 77 minutes before giving way to sophomore Lachlan Davidson (Portland, Ore. / Central Catholic) for the final 13. Davidson, who saw his first bit of action on the season, only needed to make one save over that stretch of time, as the Poets outshot the Beavers 2:1 on the day.

Whittier's first goal came 18 minutes into the first half when sophomore Nainoa Loschky (Bellevue, Wash. / Interlake) scorched a free-kick into the box that found the head of junior defender Hayden Barnouw (Seattle, Wash. / Roosevelt), who deflected the ball into the back of the net. While the 1-0 advantage would prove to be sufficient thanks to the clean sheet, the Poets added a second-half insurance goal for good measure. Sophomore Tommy Yarbrough (Encinitas, Calif. / La Costa Canyon) took a pass from senior Daniel Hayes (Chicago, Ill. / Northfield Mount Hermon) and knocked the ball past the opposing keeper for his first goal and sixth point of the season. Hayes, meanwhile, notched his second-consecutive game with an assist as well as his third helper of the season.

Head Coach Shea Harwell and the Poets will look to parlay Saturday's success into another win when they host Pomona-Pitzer Colleges (5-4-1, 3-3-1 SCIAC) on Wednesday, Oct. 13 for a 7 p.m. game.

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