Nov. 19, 2014 By Justin St. Peter
All good things must come to an end.
For the nine Warhawks men’s soccer seniors, their college careers are over, but not before concluding a season that saw the ’Hawks achieve 14 wins, the third most wins in school history.
“We had nine seniors that were all great players, great young men, great people to be around and enjoyable,” head coach Tony Guinn said.
The ’Hawks made it to the second round of the NCAA playoffs with a 3-1 victory against the Carthage College Pioneers at 7 p.m. on Nov. 13 at Fiskum Field.
The ’Hawks came out firing in the first half with the wind at their backs. They broke through in the 18th minute when senior midfielder John Gottwald’s corner kick was not cleared by a Pioneers defender. Senior defender Kody Mjelde passed it to senior defender Ryan Reid who rocketed it past the goalie for a 1-0 Hawks lead.
“I was just fortunate to be in the right place at the right time,” Reid said. “Jordan Wilkins and Kody [Mjelde] headed it down, and it was just right there.”
Four minutes later, Reid headed in junior forward’s Sam Novak’s throw-in to give the ’Hawks a 2-0 lead. It was Reid’s first multiple-goal collegiate game.
After the game, Reid said it was his best memory as a member of the Warhawks.
“I feel ecstatic,” Reid said. “I am teary-eyed right now, knowing it is the last time I played on this field. It’s unreal. I am just happy we won.”
In the 39th minute, Novak headed in the ’Hawks final goal from junior midfielder Michael Salm’s corner kick.
The ’Hawks outshot the Pioneers 9-2 in the first half.
As snow fell in the second half, the ’Hawks surrendered a goal in the 58th minute. The defense then dug in and gave Guinn his first playoff victory as head coach of the Warhawks.
It was the ’Hawks seventh time in 11 playoff appearances that they made the second round of the NCAA playoffs.
The ’Hawks then faced the No. 8 Wheaton College Thunder on Nov. 15 at Joe Bean Stadium in Wheaton, Illinois.
After registering three shots in the first 10 minutes, the ’Hawks gave up three shots in the following five minutes.
The Thunder broke through the stalemate in the 33rd minute, and then scored an insurance goal a minute into the second half.
Senior midfielder Ty McCoy’s had a shot saved in the 56th minute, and Gottwald had a shot go wide in the 63rd minute.
The Thunder then scored in the 80th minute to put the game away.
The Thunder outshot the ’Hawks 21-7, but senior goalkeeper Josh Rohde had seven saves to keep the game close.
“I thought our team played well,” Guinn said. “They gave a phenomenal effort. I feel very confident in saying that Wheaton College is one of the best college soccer teams that I have ever seen in my lifetime at any level. It would not surprise me at all if we played the national championship team.”
The ’Hawks achieved a 12-match unbeaten streak which stretched from a Sep. 26, 1-0, win on the road against Augustana to Nov. 7 in a, 1-0, loss in the WIAC Conference Championship game on the road against UW-Oshkosh. The ’Hawks went 9-0-3 during the streak.
Guinn said his favorite moment of the season was the video of the team’s reaction to being selected to the NCAA tournament, which can be found on the UWW Men’s Soccer Twitter account.
“This isn’t about me, it’s about them,” Guinn said. “If I can be in one of the greatest moments of their life being in the NCAA tournament, as coach, it’s a pretty important thing.”
