After a history-making season, the Wesleyan mens soccer team ended its season, losing 3-1 in the semi-finals to the Williams College Ephs.

Saturday’s semi-final game was the first in the Cardinals’ history. They had defeated the fourth seeded Amherst Lord Jeffs, whom they had lost to in the regular season, to earn this spot in the Final Four.

The first 35 minutes looked favorable for the Cardinals. Great midfield play from Kevin Lohela ’06, Chris Keeler ’07, Evan Berding ’05, and Josh Stephens ’07 kept the play in Williams’ half. Peter Glidden ’07 and Jared Ashe ’07 created two golden opportunities for Wesleyan but unfortunately they were unable to finish. The first saw Ashe one-on-one with the goalie but the ball just missed the corner post. The second was created when Glidden beat his defender and found Ashe, but the Williams goalie rose to the second challenge and made a terrific save.

“[There were] omens that this just may not have been the Cardinals’ day,” said Head Coach Geoff Wheeler, after another shot from Keeler was blocked by a Williams defender.

The 38th minute saw the first Williams goal off of a Cardinal turnover. This did not dishearten the Cardinals, as they continued to work the ball down the field. The turning point of the game came in the last seconds of the first half. The Cardinals pushed for the equalizer and the Ephs broke quickly.

As the defense retreated, a Williams attacker looked as if he sought a teammate who the linesman momentarily flagged for off sides. The pass bounced off a defender and fell back to the Ephs attacker, who scored the second goal with about ten seconds left in the first half. Because of the “half call” of the linesman, Wes defenders had hesitated during the original pass, creating the opportunity for the Williams team. Despite protests, the only result was Coach Wheeler’s first yellow card of his career and a 2-0 deficit for the Cardinals.

The beginning of the second half was detrimental to the Cardinals, as Williams scored its third and final goal in the 46th minute off a ball that goalie Dan Penrod ’05 misjudged. The determined Cardinals kept fighting and, with help from a Williams red card that saw the Ephs one man down in the 68th minute, Glidden scored off a corner that Ashe directed back towards the goal. He almost put in goal number two, but the ball met the spot where the post and crossbar meet, just barely blocking the shot out of the net. Although Wesleyan continued to fight, time was not on their side, and the game ended 3-1 with Williams moving on to the finals.

So ended a fantastic season for the Cardinals. The outlook for next season is good, and the Cardinals hope to continue on the success streak set by the 2003 team. Goodbye to seniors Nick Vincent, Chris Feige, Jon Hecht, David Stone, Brad Wasik, Rick Ferri and Tivon Sidorsky.

“What a group they have been and what a legacy they leave behind!” Wheeler said.