KANSAS CITY, Mo. - For the second time in three seasons, the University of Charleston men's soccer team fell one painful step short of winning a national title.
This time around, the Golden Eagles were undone in the Division II national championship game by Wingate, which got a goal in each half from Jon Ander and held UC off the board for a 2-0 win Saturday at Swope Soccer Village.
"We just didn't really play enough chances, we had multiple chances and possession," Charleston coach Chris Grassie said. "The first goal was a bit unlucky, it went after a deflection. But we played well and possessed well, we got into the white areas, we just didn't have enough scoring opportunities in front of the goal. It could have went either way."
Wingate (19-1) held a slim advantage in shots (10-8) and placed five shots on goal compared to only two for the Golden Eagles. The Bulldogs had allowed just eight goals on the season entering Saturday's match.
"We got into some really good positions, we just lacked a little bit of quality on the finishes," Grassie said. "We had two headers that were both good chances in the box and usually we finish at least one of them. We scored 78 goals on the season, we just didn't have two more of them in us today."
With only five seniors on the roster, it was expected to be a bit of a rebuilding year for the Golden Eagles this season, and there were some bumps along the way to suggest that would be the case.
Charleston (19-3-2) dropped conference matches to both Urbana and Notre Dame in the middle of the season, putting a conference championship a bit in doubt, much less a run at a national championship.
But the Golden Eagles recovered and grew on the fly, going 9-0-2 after a 1-0 defeat to Urbana on Oct. 12, including a revenge win over Notre Dame in the Mountain East Conference championship game.
Grassie said his team made great strides from the beginning of the season, despite falling just short on Saturday.
"We kept trying to say it was a rebuilding year," Grassie said. "We could've finished third in the conference after our losses to Notre Dame and Urbana, but unfortunately, once we got here to the Final Four, we were probably the best team there."
Charleston goalie Paulo Pita made a pair of saves for Charleston and will return next year for his junior season, as will a slew of other Golden Eagles underclassmen.
The goal will be clear for UC after making its third consecutive trip to the Final Four, to take the last and final step.
But for now, Grassie said it's a pretty tough time for his players.
"I was sick to my stomach [after the game]," Grassie said. "To go in there and talk to the boys ... I just tell them I love them and that it's been a pleasure. There's not too much you can say that they don't already know or feel."