HANOVER, Ind. – The Hanover College men's soccer team opened its 2026 season in dominant fashion Tuesday evening, defeating Spalding University 6-0 at the Hanover Soccer Complex. The Panthers scored twice in the opening half before adding four more goals after the break.
Hanover controlled the offensive attack throughout the contest, outshooting Spalding 22-6, including a 7-2 advantage in shots on goal. The Panthers also held a 4-1 edge in corner kicks.
The Panthers got on the board in the 11th minute when Kunal Chawla found the back of the net off an assist from Nico Gotoh, giving Hanover an early 1-0 advantage.
Hanover doubled its lead before halftime as McLain Barber scored in the 38th minute, with Joe Luther providing the assist, sending the Panthers into the break with a 2-0 lead.
The Panther offense wasted little time adding to the advantage in the second half. Gotoh scored in the 54th minute off an assist from Andrew Pavlisko, before Pavlisko followed with a goal of his own just moments later, assisted by Cole Hubert, pushing the Hanover lead to 4-0.
Hanover added two more goals in the 67th and 68th minutes. John Azzara scored off an assist from Arlyn Trevor Bolte, while Luther capped the scoring less than a minute later with an assist from Blake Koch to secure the 6-0 victory.
Six different Panthers found the scoresheet with a goal, while six assists came from six different players. Pavlisko and Gotoh each finished with three points after recording both a goal and an assist.
Defensively, Hanover kept Spalding off the board behind Patrick Schoellig and Dugan Webster in goal. Schoellig recorded one save through 67 minutes before Webster took over for the final 23 minutes and added another save to complete the shutout.
The Panthers return to action on Saturday, Sept. 5, traveling to Denison University for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
