Correction Appended Below

The Washington University men’s soccer team finished play at the BSC Labor Day Classic with a 1-1 record after losing the season opener to The University of the South (Sewanee) 1-3 before defeating host Birmingham Southern College 2-1.

With the opening loss, the Bears dropped out of the NSCoAA Division III national rankings after being ranked sixth. Of more importance though was the opening loss to Sewanee despite dominating the game. The Bears finished with a 25-6 shot lead and an 11-3 shots on goal lead, yet the Tigers won by two goals. The Tigers also came from behind in the second half in order to overcome a goal by Wash. U. junior Ryan Grandin at the 18:31 mark.

“We weren’t all working hard on defense. We weren’t all doing our jobs. The first half we took for granted because we outplayed them so badly, and they scored three goals in the second half,” graduate student co-captain Marshall Plow said.

“This past weekend, we had more skill and better players than our opponents. That will not always be the case, and in any game, we have to play as a group in both directions with intelligent positioning and decisions. That will determine how well we do,” Head Coach Joe Clarke said about the loss on Saturday and win on Sunday.

“We have been working on a new defensive system, and the game showed we have lots of finer points to iron out. Equally important [is that] the players realized they needed to play quicker and simpler to succeed as a team. I hope the game proves to be a long-term lesson for the team,” Clarke added. He also said that the team changed to a zonal four in Sunday’s contest against Birmingham Southern as a result of a few collapsed plays on Saturday.

The changes seemed to work Sunday, as Wash. U. held a 12-4 shot lead (6-3 shots on goal). After the Panthers scored the opening goal at the 21:45 mark, the Bears answered with second half goals by Plow and senior Kellen Hayes at the 50:30 and 70:01 marks, respectively.

“I think [winning was important] for our confidence if nothing else. After the 3-1 loss and being down 1-0, I think it took a lot of character to respond,” Plow said.

“The team chemistry and desire proved to be the MVP of the weekend because all the players carried through 100 percent on a commitment to play within the team structure: quickly and simply,” Clarke said.

“It [the Sewanee game] showed us what we need to work on. It was a great wake-up call and showed that we need to work on team defense. We do have a lack of size, so we need to balance that with battling and playing team defense,” Plow added.

The team is next in action Saturday at 7 p.m. against Westminster College. The first home game will be Tuesday at 7 p.m. against Principia College.

Correction

An earlier version of this article mistakenly identifited co-captain Marshall Plow as a junior; in fact, Plow’s NCAA eligibility status is that of a senior and his class level is that of a graduate student. Student Life regrets the error.