The Blinn College men’s soccer team ended its season with a loss to No. 7 Angelina College in the semifinal round of the Gulf South District Tournament on Wednesday in Lufkin, Texas.
The Buccaneers fell 4-1 in their second appearance in the tournament’s semifinal round.
Blinn finished with a 14-7 overall record and bested its previous program mark of 13 wins in a single season.
“Even though the season ended in a loss, the squad set new markers throughout the 2023 season and I’m proud of their achievements,” Blinn head coach Michael McBride said. “This has been a tremendous group to work with and I can’t wait to get back out on the training pitch with them.”
Blinn will graduate a group of sophomores which combined for 27 victories and earned the first two postseason victories in program history in 2022 and 2023.
“Our sophomores helped take the program to back-to-back district semifinals and broke the win record each season they were here,” McBride added. “They’ve given us a great platform to build on, and we feel this is a program truly in ascendance.”
The Roadrunners scored three first-half goals before the Buccaneers ended the shutout with a goal of their own in the 65th minute. Freshman midfielder Diego Ramos scored on an assist from sophomore forward David Garcia and freshman defender Philipp Mokwa. Angelina closed the scoring with a tally in the 87th minute.
Angelina held a 15-12 shot advantage over Blinn, while the Bucs finished with a 6-1 edge in corner kicks.
In goal for Blinn was freshman keeper Noah LeMaster, who collected six saves in 90 minutes of play.
The Bucs’ record setting season not only set the team’s new single-season win record, but also included new marks for most goals scored (84), most assists (115), most points (283), most shutouts (eight), and most players with 20 or more points (five). The season also saw Garcia set new program highs for goals scored in a career (35) and in a season (19), while LeMaster won 14 games for a new single-season program best.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 44 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
