The rain and the winds threatened to put an end to Senior Night for the Morris Redskins soccer team on Thursday before it even began, but the ‘Skins carried on and survived the weather. Unfortunately, they could not survive the onslaught of Yorkville senior forward Artan Emini, as they dropped a Northern Illinois Big 12 East Conference match to the Foxes by a score of 5-1.

After a pregame ceremony aided by umbrellas and raincoats, nine seniors started for Morris on the night, with Kade Bashor forced to miss action due to injury. Mitchell Peal, Mike Grommon, Zach Harper, Jacob Komperda, Zack Laursen, Josh Schmitt, Luis Villanueva,  Brogan Connor and Alex O’Conner joined juniors Chava Villanueva and Brian Vazquez to form Morris’ starting 11 for Morris’ final home game of the 2012 season.

“We had guys who couldn’t even do a really good two-touch when they started,” second-year Morris head coach David Valdivia said of his senior class. “And they didn’t know much about formation, and that’s what I’m trying to teach. Every little bit that they’ve gained – learning how to pass – has been really special to see.”