In a pair of best-of-three matchups, the Buccaneers fell to the University of Waterloo 2-0 before earning a 2-0 win over the University of Miami-Ohio.
“We had far too many communication issues, and mentally just seemed to struggle after we let Waterloo capture a point that should have been ours,” Blinn assistant coach Kyle Murto said. “It was an unfortunate loss because it is definitely a match that I think we win nine out of 10 times, but I also have to give Waterloo credit because they performed exceptionally well today.”
Murto was impressed with his team’s ability to rebound quickly and keep its hopes of advancing to the playoff round intact.
“We had a good conversation in between our matches, which helped reset my players’ mentally and tighten up some of the issues that plagued us last match,” the coach said. “The loss from earlier definitely lit a match under them and created a spark that we needed going into this must-win game.”
Competing for the Bucs were Gabriel Lopez, William Bowman, Jake Langridge, Matthew Hutchings, and Nicholas Behney.
Blinn is now 3-1 in its pool following wins over Arizona Forsaken and the University of Toronto on Saturday. The Bucs will take on the University of Oregon at 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 1, before battling top-seeded Northwood University at 2 p.m., also on April 1. The team will conclude pool play with a tilt against Rowan University at 1 p.m. on Sunday, April 2. In order to punch its playoff ticket, Blinn will need either to win out, or hope for some favorable results from the pool’s other matchups. The pool’s top two teams advance.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 42 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
