Beacons Shock Top-Seeded EOU in PK’s

MEDFORD, Ore.  – They say where there is a will, there is a way. Bushnell men’s soccer will tell you where there is a Will Haberfield, there is a way to the CCC semifinals. The senior Goalkeeper pulled off one of the most impressive performances in school history on Saturday night, making the save on not one, not two, but three shootout penalty kicks, to help the No. 8-seed Beacons advance past No. 1-seed Eastern Oregon University after a 1-1 draw.

The Beacons (10-6-3), making just their second-ever trip to the Cascade Collegiate Conference tournament, competed in a shootout for the very first time, advancing 3-1 as Haberfield denied three separate attempts while Danny Rojas, Manuel Bleck Da Silva, and Omar Barajas connected on theirs.

“We had an amazing performance and team effort tonight,” said Head Coach Joao Ehlers. “The boys stuck to the plan for 110 minutes, playing a man down during a portion of overtime and working extremely hard during the whole game. We are very proud of them and excited about our next match.”

The path to the shootout was anything but easy, as they were playing from behind early. The regular-season CCC champions got on the board in the 21st minute as Marcos Bravo scored on a pass from Anthony Macedo.

Bushnell never stopped putting on the pressure despite the Mounties best efforts to play keep-away, and in the 63rd minute found the equalizer. Walter Reustle send a cross from the corner into the box, where it one hopped to Barajas, finding the back of the net for his 12th goal of the season.

Bushnell’s backs remained against the wall as EOU worked through regulation and two ten-minute overtime periods trying to escape the upset. Just two minutes into the first overtime, junior defender Jesus Aguilar picked up his second yellow card, giving the Mounties a man-advantage. Eastern proceeded to force Haberfield into four saves over the next eight minutes, but the Beacons were able to stand tall, sending the game to the PKs.

Barajas said, “I think our team had a belief from the start and we fought till the end and knew we were going to get rewarded in the end.”

“Tonight was unbelievable,” added Haberfield. “I am so thankful to be a part of this team. The effort was immense and every single one of the guys earned this result tonight. I am so happy we get to continue our season, especially for the seniors who have been here since the beginning.”

UP NEXT: The Beacons, who are now 1-1-1 all-time in the post-season, advance to the CCC Semifinals for just the second time in school history and the first time since 2017. They will play on Monday at 4:00 pm, taking on No. 2-seed Carroll College, who defeated No. 7-seed Oregon Tech on Saturday, 3-1. Bushnell will look to avenge their 3-0 loss to the Saints on October 31.