Coming off a strong 3-0 start to the regular season, the Kenyon men’s soccer team hosted a duo of California teams, Pomona-Pitzer Colleges and Occidental College, on Mavec Field over the weekend. Kenyon opened the two-game stretch with a convincing 2-0 win against Pomona-Pitzer before falling short 0-2 against Occidental. On Wednesday night, the Owls got back in the win column against Marietta College, defeating the Pioneers 3-0. 

On Friday, the Owls came out hungry, with Emmett Brown ’28 notching the first shot of the match in just the second minute. Two clutch saves from goalie Matthew Kayser ’29 kept the game scoreless before Kenyon took the lead in the 31st minute. Jack Commandeur ’29 floated a header past the Pomona-Pitzer keeper from a cross sent in by Adrian Bondartsov ’30, giving the Owls a 1-0 advantage. Despite conceding four corners in the first half, Kenyon saw out the period with the lead. 

Outshooting Pomona-Pitzer 8-5, the Owls carried their momentum into the second half. Continuing to create goal opportunities, Lucas de Alarcon ’28 doubled the lead just minutes into the second half, putting Kenyon up 2-0. The Owls managed to fend off the Sagehens for the remainder of the match, pushing their win streak to four. 

Michael Nkansa ’29 attributed Kenyon’s Friday victory to the Owls’ intense preparation. “The win was a continuation of the hard work done throughout preseason,” Nkansa said. “It’s always motivating to see our hard work pay off on the pitch.”

Just two days later, the Owls hosted Occidental. Despite creating several chances and making key defensive saves, Kenyon entered the halftime break trailing 0-1 after conceding in the 40th minute. 

After coming out aggressively in the second half and outshooting the Tigers 16-4, the Owls conceded again in the 78th minute. Occidental then went down to 10 men after receiving a red card in the 80th minute, giving Kenyon one last opportunity to produce a comeback. However, the Owls were unable to find the back of the net and the game ended 0-2.

Reflecting on the loss, Nkansa said that this will only motivate the team to work harder. “The loss keeps us grounded to remind us that we are not where we want to be and that there’s more work to be done,” he said.

Kenyon dominated against Marietta on Wednesday night. The Owls wasted no time challenging the Pioneers’ defense, breaking through after just two shots on goal. At 11:04, Kevin Farina ’28 received a pass from Grant Blake ’29 and ripped a shot into the lower left corner to secure a 1-0 lead for Kenyon. Just a few minutes later, de Alarcon sent the ball to Brown, who effortlessly put the ball in the back of the net, extending Kenyon’s lead 2-0. 

The Owls continued their scoring streak with a goal from Hayato Ishii ’28, once again assisted by de Alarcon. In the second half, despite many more opportunities in front of the cage, Ishii’s goal was the last one of the game and Kenyon returned to Gambier with a 3-0 win.

The Owls’ record currently sits at 5-1. Kenyon will continue its streak of road matchups in Cleveland on Saturday when the Owls take on Case Western Reserve University.