GRINNELL, Iowa – Grinnell College's men's soccer team has moved into territory it hasn't been to in more than three decades with Tuesday afternoon's 3-0 blanking of Knox College in the Midwest Conference Tournament quarterfinals.
The Pioneers improved to 13-4-1 on the season, their most victories since the 1994 campaign. But more importantly, the victory at Springer Field sent Grinnell into Saturday's semifinal round at Luther College. The matchup between the third-seeded Pioneers and second-seeded Illinois College kicks off at 2 p.m.
Grinnell dominated Tuesday's affair from the start, bolting out to a 2-0 lead through 24 minutes. The Pioneers outshot Knox 24-6 and held a 9-3 edge in corners.
Demi Oni '27 began the scoring barrage in the 21
st minute when he found the back of the net on
Samuel Gojjam's '27 assist. It was Oni's second goal of the season and sixth in his career.
Three minutes later,
Jake Lu '30 recorded a goal on a header with
Oliver Klemm '29 getting the assist. Lu has seven goals this season.
The score remained 2-0 through halftime until the 84
th minute when Klemm gave Grinnell some insurance with a goal on assists by Oni and Gojjam. It was the fifth goal of the season for Klemm.
Jack Alexander '29 worked another shutout at keeper for Grinnell, making one save in the process. He has six shutouts this season and eight in his career while improving to 13-4-1. His shutout total ranks ninth on the Pioneers' all-time chart.
Jack Pennachio '28 led the Pioneers' shot brigade with seven, while Gojjam contributed six and Lu added three. Oni, Klemm and
Ian O'Loughlin tallied two apiece and
Luke Akosa '29 and
Jake Brecknock '27 had one each.
Knox finished its season with a 4-8-5 mark.
