Senior midfielder Colin Link dribbles past Emory defender. (Rachel Benitz Borrego | Staff Photographer)

Coming off a University Athletic Association (UAA) championship last year, the men’s soccer team now faces a difficult reality in order to defend their title: They have only won two of five conference games so far this season. The team had some unfortunate results last weekend, losing 1-2 to the No. 3 University of Rochester and tying 2-2 to No. 2 Emory University at home. The games leave them with zero margin for error to win the conference and secure a spot in the postseason. 

The Bears came into last weekend feeling motivated after winning five out of their six most recent games. Their one loss was to No. 1 Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), which further spurred them on coming into the weekend. WashU is now 9-3-3 overall and 2-2-1 in conference play. 

WashU vs. University of Rochester (1-2)

The Bears came out revving against the Rochester Yellowjackets, swinging the momentum in WashU’s direction early on. They won their first corner just three minutes in and would have two more in the first 10 minutes alone. The effort earned them a well-deserved goal early in the first half by senior forward Ethan Wirtschafter, his eleventh of the season. Though the Yellowjackets gained some possession, the Bears made it to halftime with a lead. 

“In the first half, we controlled the game,” said senior midfielder Nik Avillo. “We played to our strengths, played the ball short, and had patience.”

However, when WashU came out for the second half, their energy disappeared. Rochester capitalized on the Bears’ slow start and scored in the first two minutes, tying the game 1-1. 

Tensions were high as the minutes ticked by, and the teams could not get past each other. Then, with 10 minutes to go, the Yellowjackets surged forward, drawing a foul and gaining a penalty kick. With an unsavable bottom corner finish, Rochester went up 2-1.

“The [penalty kick] call was a tough one,” Avillo said. “And then it’s always hard to recover from a [penalty kick] call when the other team’s going to sit back and park the bus.”

And “park the bus” they did. While WashU pushed and tried to scratch out a tying goal, Rochester sat defensively and absorbed any pressure WashU threw at them. Senior defender Quentin Gomez landed his second serious foul, earning a second yellow card and becoming ineligible to play against Emory. The Bears could not find another goal in time and lost the first game of the weekend.

“I thought it was a tough result, and I think we all got frustrated in the end,” said sophomore midfielder Sebastian Valdes. “Our main focus right now is we don’t want to think about our mistakes, and we just want to focus on the next game.”

WashU vs. Emory University (2-2)

The Bears came out fighting in their last home game of the season against the Emory Eagles on Sunday, Oct. 25. 

“We knew that we needed to have a good recovery from Friday,” sophomore midfielder Nick Hammond said. “It was an unfortunate game, so I think we were all looking forward to [Emory], and we were buzzing about it.”

WashU had another reason to be excited. A growing rivalry over the past few years made their face-off that much more competitive. The Bears lost to the Eagles in both 2023 and 2024, with scores of 0-2 and 2-5, respectively. But last year, they delivered an upset, winning 1-0. The competition between the two teams has since amplified. WashU needed to show up not just to recover in the conference, but to keep their pride and bragging rights.

Despite a promising start for the Bears with a shot on goal by Wirtschafter, Emory took the lead off a corner kick 11 minutes into the game. Ten10 minutes later, WashU responded: Sophomore defender Wole Adeoye pushed to the endline and shot from far right. Emory defenders tried to clear the attempt but instead pushed the ball further into goal. Both teams went to halftime with a goal in hand.

The pressure started to build on both sides in the second half. The Bears scored 15 minutes into the half when Valdes found Adeoye on a breakaway, marking his second goal of the game. Still, both teams traded fouls and free kicks as the animosity continued to grow, sharing a total of 14 fouls in the second half alone.

The pressure finally boiled over with 11 minutes left in the game. Hostile language from an Emory player after a foul started a bout of pushing and cursing among players on the field. The referee handed out two red cards, one to the Emory player and the other to Wirtschafter. After reevaluation, the referee revoked Wirtschafter’s red, forcing Emory to finish the game a player down. It did not stop their pressure. Despite only playing with 10 men, Emory managed to even the score with six minutes left in the game. 

“The momentum shifted their way because then we lost our groove,” Hammond said. “I think that’s what [Emory] wanted.”

WashU could not score, ending 2-2 at the final whistle. The Bears came out of the weekend in a three-way tie for No. 4 in UAA rankings, but they are still in the running to win the UAA if they win their remaining games. Despite the loss and tie, Head Coach Andrew Bordelon isn’t nervous for the rest of conference play and postseason.

“We control our own destiny,” Bordelon said. “I know we’re looking forward to New York.”

They look to improve their UAA standings with their remaining two games in hopes that it will be enough to qualify for the postseason. The Bears will be heading to New York on Saturday, Oct. 31, to play New York University.