Men’s soccer blanks W&J in home finale
By Mia Gallagher · Sports Editor
After securing the top seed in the PAC playoffs earlier in the week, the Grove City College men’s soccer team came away with a senior day shutout last Saturday, blanking the Washington & Jefferson Presidents in their regular-season home finale.
The Wolverines captured the coveted tournament top seed and first round bye with their 4-0 win against Saint Vincent on Oct. 22, granting them home field advantage throughout the playoff and confidence heading into their remaining regular season schedule.
This victory, which saw an impressive scoring burst in the second half from the Wolverines, featured standout performances from the team on both sides of the ball.
After a scoreless first half, senior midfielder Aidan Eck opened up the Wolverines’ offensive onslaught with his fourth goal of 2025, receiving an assist from classmate Camden Thomas to bury the ball at 66:37 in the match.
Junior classmates Colton Hudson and Theo Campbell produced the team’s second goal just five minutes later with Campbell assisting Hudson’s first goal of 2025. Less than 10 minutes later, freshman Cristian Garcia notched his first collegiate goal, scoring unassisted at 78:31 in the match to bring the Wolverines’ lead to 3-0.
Closing out Grove City’s offensive effort was freshman Judah Gray, who netted this insurance goal off an assist from senior Owen Zimmerman at 86:07 in the match.
Grove City maintained an edge in shots on goal (13-1) and total shots (25-20) over W&J. The Wolverines also tallied nine corner kicks while managing not to concede any to the Presidents.
Defensively, freshman goalkeeper Keller Krieger recorded only one save through the first 77:37 of the match to secure the shutout. Junior Anthony D’Ippolito relieved Krieger for the remaining 12:33 of the match.
Before the match, the team honored their eight seniors — Eck, Thomas, Zimmerman, Jayden Claycamp, Matt Herrmann, Matt Sampsell, Daniel Sharp and Cole Sonday — for their work and dedication to the program and its efforts.
“It was just a fun day to get to celebrate with my class and everyone playing together, and scoring goals is always fun,” Eck said.
“I think the team has just continued to get so close, and my favorite memories will always be time spent with the team. Whether that is Hicks after training or the trip to Michigan, spending time with the team is always the highlight.”
Looking ahead to the upcoming conference tournament, Eck remains confident the Wolverines are ready to face any challenges the semifinals and finals matches may hold.
“We know that if we are playing our best that we can win every game, so as we approach the tournament, the message is to not slow down and stay in stride,” Eck said.
After closing out their regular second against Waynesburg last Wednesday, the Wolverines will host the PAC tournament semifinal match Wednesday on Don Lyle Field.
