The #13 Marshalltown Community College men's soccer team traveled to White Bear Lake Minnesota to take on the Wood Ducks of Century College on Sunday afternoon. The wet and muddy conditions made playing difficult but in the end, the Tigers would walk away with a win. Both teams had a hard time staying on their feet, with loose grass and mud beneath them as the Tiger's yellow jerseys quickly turned into a shade of brown from falling down on the slick surface.
The Tigers took the lead early in the first half when Taiki Kinugawa hit Kino Ryosuke on a quick pass from a foul by the Wood Ducks, Ryosuke was able to put the ball in the back of the net before the Wood Ducks realized the ball was in play. The Tigers were able to hold off the offensive attacks by the Wood Ducks in the first half with help from Joel Serrano's three saves. The game would go scoreless through the rest of the first half.
In the second half the Tigers went dowe the field and extended their lead to 2-0 in the first minute of play. Rafael Vacas passed to Eneko Lasheras just passed centerline when Lasheras curved a long shot over the Wood Ducks defenders and goalkeeper finding its way into the net.
"Eneko has played well all season long in the middle and it was nice to see him score a few goals for us this weekend." Stated Coach Creighton Jenness.
The Tigers would continue to attach and held possession of the ball for the majority of the second half. The Wood Ducks would make a few runs at the Tiger goal as Joel Serrano again had three saves in the second half and would finish with a shutout.
Coach Jenness was very pleased with the performance of the freshman goalkeeper, stating, "Joel had a huge game for us, he had some great saves and played with a lot of confidence I was very impressed with his play today."
The Tigers will be back in action of Wednesday when they host the Warriors of Indian Hills. This will be the toughest test for the Tigers this season as the Warriors are currently 11-1 and ranked 6th in the latest NJCAA poll. The ranked matchup will have conference standings at stake as the Warriors have not lost in the conference this season and the Tigers are currently 5-1 in conference play. The game will start at 4:00 PM and will be played on the Marshalltown Community College campus.
