KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Spurgeon College fought back from a two goal hole to pull even midway through the second half before Principia College answered with three unanswered goals in a 6-3 decision Monday afternoon at the Central Bank Sporting Complex. Ty Dittbrenner scored twice and Daniel Martinez added a goal and an assist as the Knights fell to 2-3 on the season.
Principia controlled possession and territory for most of the afternoon, outshooting Spurgeon 29-7 and taking all six corner kicks in the match. The Knights made the most of what they had, converting three of their five shots on goal, and for 52 seconds in the second half the scoreboard read level at 3-3.
THE RUNDOWN
Principia struck first in the fourth minute when Alessio Ripamonti finished a Travis Peng service, but Dittbrenner answered in the 17th minute to pull the Knights even. The visitors seized control late in the half, as Jann Wainaina scored in the 35th minute and Keagan Sierra followed 79 seconds later to make it 3-1 at the break.
Spurgeon came out of halftime with purpose. Dittbrenner cut the deficit to one in the 54th minute off a feed from Martinez, and 102 seconds later Martinez himself buried the equalizer with Isaac Wipf providing the assist.
The parity did not last. Alberto Hernandez restored the Principia lead in the 57th minute, and the visitors added late goals from Pedro Rocchi in the 83rd minute and Hernandez again in the 86th to close it out.
SCORE HIGHLIGHTS
Spurgeon Individuals: Ty Dittbrenner 2 goals, 4 shots, 3 SOG; Daniel Martinez 1 goal, 1 assist, 1 shot; Isaac Wipf 1 assist, 1 shot; Levi Spenst 8 saves in 90 minutes.
Principia Individuals: Alberto Hernandez 2 goals; Travis Peng 2 assists, 4 shots, 3 SOG; Alessio Ripamonti 1 goal; Jann Wainaina 1 goal; Keagan Sierra 1 goal; Pedro Rocchi 1 goal.
Key Team Stats: Shots 29-7 Principia; shots on goal 11-5 Principia; saves 9-2 Spurgeon; corner kicks 6-0 Principia; fouls 12-7 Principia.
TURNING POINT
The match swung twice inside a five minute window. Trailing 3-1 at halftime, the Knights scored in the 54th and 55th minutes to erase the deficit entirely, with Martinez involved in both goals. But Principia responded immediately. Hernandez put the visitors back in front at 56:15, less than a minute after the equalizer, and the Knights never drew level again.
KEY NOTES
- Spurgeon falls to 2-3 overall and remains 1-0 in conference play.
- Dittbrenner recorded his second multi goal game, scoring twice on four shots.
- Spurgeon converted three of five shots on goal, a 60 percent clip.
- Spenst made eight saves, with the defense adding a ninth on a cleared attempt in the 39th minute.
- Martinez posted a three point afternoon with a goal and an assist.
