When you get to the end of any season, games become more and more meaningful. This year, that especially holds true for the Marian Ancilla Men's Soccer team. Friday night, they hosted Lakeland Community College in what proved to be a very important game on many fronts. First, it was Sophomore Day, so roughly half the team took the field one final time. Additionally, the Chargers entered the contest two wins away from qualifying for the Region 12 Tournament.
With that said, the Chargers (11-4-0) secured a much-needed 4-0 victory over the Lakers, and they did so with an aggressive attack early. First, it was Freshman Hein Lin who found the back of the net unassisted in the 9th minute. Later, in the 15th minute, Lin assisted fellow Freshman Bawi Za Sang for his team-leading 10th goal of the year.
Marian Ancilla started the second half with early scores again. Freshman Victor Rodriguez was first on the board in the 56th minute, assisted by Freshman Yeffreys Quintanilla, then it was Sophomore Santiago Morales off of Lin's second assist of the day.
Redshirt Freshman Trent Platz and Sophomore Tolulope Oluwafemi combined to pitch a shutout in goal. It marked the 6th time they've held their opponent scoreless this season, and the 4th time in a row. The Chargers, in fact, haven't allowed a goal since October 9th, and Platz has been the MCCAA Goalie of the Week for two consecutive weeks now.
"It's great to get a win for the Sophomores in their last home game," commented Head Coach Kirk Weiss. "With back to back games (today and tomorrow), it was good to get a lead and be able to rest our guys some for tomorrow's matchup. Six wins in a row, including four straight clean sheets...the guys are finishing strong! Now we quickly turn our attention to Lake Michigan tomorrow."
The Chargers finish they regular season Saturday (10/26/24) when they travel to Lake Michigan College for a 3:00 p.m. start. With a win, Marian Ancilla will qualify for the Region 12 Tournament and a chance to continue playing another weekend in the postseason. If you are able, please come out and support these young men, as they play just 70 minutes away from Plymouth in Benton Harbor, Michigan!!
