Council Bluffs, IA—The highly anticipated top-5 matchup between No. 3 Marshalltown Community College and No. 4 Iowa Western Community College lived up to its expectations on the field Saturday afternoon, but the team's settled for a 1-1 draw at the Reiver Sports Complex.
An early goal from MCC's leading scorer Kino Ryosuke (Hyogo, Japan/Takigawadaini) put the Reivers on the heels, but the Reivers responded with a second half goal to even the match. A full 90 minutes of regulation soccer was not enough for either side as both sides prepared for its third overtime match in their last five meetings. An additional 20 minutes provided plenty of excitement but no scoring as the match ended in an even tie.
"Just like the first time we played this season, two great teams battled for every ball and every play," MCC head coach Rafael Martinez stated following the game. MCC defeated then-No. 3 Iowa Western 2-0 at home on Sept. 17.
"We thought we did a very good job following our plan and we defended very well. We tried to create opportunities with our speed up front and fortunately we got one early on. They had more chances than us in the second half, but we are a very good team defensively. The whole team defends as a unit, but when they got through, Rafa (Pereira) was there to make some outstanding saves and giving us confidence."
Taking part in just its second top-5 matchup in program history, the Tigers opened up Saturday's match with the Reivers with a bang. Ryosuke, who scored the game-winning goal against Iowa Western on Sept. 17, shocked the enthusiastic Reiver crowd with a goal just 2:31 into the match. Freshman Roger de La Villa (Barcelona, Spain/Escola Sant Gregori) was credited with the assist on a through ball in the box.
Iowa Western found the back of the net just minutes later, but the Tiger defense held its ground and the Reivers were whistled for an offside. Ryosuke continued to pressure throughout the early portions of the match to keep the pressure on the home team. MCC took its 1-0 lead into halftime.
Iowa Western was able to adjust at the break and tied the match at 1-1 with a goal in the 51st minute off of a rebound from the top of the box. Despite the goal, sophomore Rafael Pereira (Lisbon, Portugal/Escola Secundaria Vergilio Ferreira) made a series of spectacular saves to keep the match even at one.
In the 77th minute, freshman Alieu Kamara (Brooklyn Park, MN/Prairie Seeds) was whistled for his second yellow card of the match, forcing the Tigers to play man-down the rest of the way. Despite the limited numbers on the field, MCC was able to maintain the tie and force overtime.
Pereira made a pair of saves that were all but certain to find the back of the net in the opening overtime period. The sophomore leaped to knock a shot over the cross bar and stopped another from finding a corner of the net.
The match finished with its most dramatic moment of the day as Iowa Western appeared to score off of a free kick with two seconds left in the second overtime. After a number of saves from Pereira along with a scramble in the box, the Reivers were whistled for an offside call, ending the match in the draw.
"Today was a great team effort, especially with us facing different challenges throughout the day and playing a man-down for a good portion of the second half," Martinez added. We still fought and we still competed until the very end."
Pereira posted seven saves on the day, having to give maximum effort on each one of them.
"Always a tough game against Iowa Western," Pereira stated following the match. "We had some opportunities throughout the match to put it away, but in the second half we had to defend and we had to be there for each other. That's what we do the best- being compact as a team and as a family. Being a man-down we gave everything we had. Given the circumstances, I think we did an awesome job as a team."
Saturday was the fifth match over the last two seasons where both teams were ranked in the NJCAA poll. Four of those matches have gone to double overtime.
Next up for the Tigers is a home match against Iowa Lakes Community College at 4:00 PM on Oct. 4.
