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by Joshua Lawon - The Metropolitan
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| Senior Metro forward Alex Grecu battles to head
the ball from St. Edwards defender Jared Tostado in the Roadrunner’s
1-0 victory Oct. 12. Metro is currently 9-6-1, 3-4-1 RMAC. |
The Metro men’s soccer team is 6-3-1 after its last ten games.
Last week, the Roadrunners were able to jump from sixth to third
in the region, which would have meant the team was eligible to make
the Regional Tournament if they continued to play well.
The team was also on the brink of doing something it hadn’t
done all season: break into the Top 25 polls.
Last weekend, Metro continued to push toward making its playoff dreams
more of a reality when it faced the No. 4 Incarnate Word Crusaders
and the St. Edwards Hilltoppers.
On Friday, Oct. 10, the Roadrunners tried to start a new winning-streak,
but the goal was denied in the tenth minute as Incarnate Word’s
Fernando Jorge scored unassisted. The two teams continued to fight
until halftime, but it remained 1-0.
In the 60th minute of the game, the Crusaders put the ‘Runners
away as a Pat Thomas (UIW) shot was deflected off of the leg of defenseman
Corey Gonzales (UIW) and past Metro senior goalkeeper Eric Butler.
Incarnate Word went on to defeat Metro State 2-0.
“(They scored) two fluke goals. One was on the breakaway; (Jorge)
dinked it in and it went between (Butler’s) legs and the other
was a deflection,” said Zach Cousins, sophomore midfielder.
“Butler was probably going to make the save, but it deflected
off of Corey’s leg and went in.”
The loss was quickly forgotten as St. Edwards came to Metro Sunday,
Oct. 12. But this time, an opportunity to move up in the regional
ranking would not slip past Metro.
The Roadrunners scored first as Cousins kicked in a lob pass from
freshman midfielder Chris Bolton in the ninth minute of the game.
After the first half, the game would get rough, as Metro and St.
Edwards would begin to let their emotions out. Seven of the nine cards
issued in the game would come in the second period of play.
Cousins was ejected after collecting two yellow cards in the game.
Fellow teammates Chad Pearson, sophomore defender, Bolton and Aldo
Alcaraz-Reza, sophomore midfielder, would also be given yellow cards
in the game.
“St. Edwards is a great (team). They never quit, they keep
coming, they keep coming, they keep coming… I think we played
well early and fought hard late,” said Brain Crookham, head
coach. “We stayed in the battle and we made sure that we were
competitive the whole way.”
Last Sunday, the Roadrunners saw their Regional and Rocky Mountain
Athletic Conference playoff chances hindered, but not lost, as they
took a 2-0 loss from the Fort Lewis Skyhawks.
“I think we came out flat,” Crockham said. “When
you give somebody a jump on you three minutes in (goal by Shane Thoreson),
you’re kind of digging out of a hole against a good team; it’s
gonna be a long day.”
Metro had its Top 25 ranking and possible one game lead in the Regional
Rankings squelched with the early goal, but the 1-0 deficit in the
first half would quickly become a two goal deficit when Fort Lewis’
John Cunliffe would score in the 72nd minute to destroy any comeback
opportunity. The loss brought Metro’s record to 9-6-1, 3-4-1
RMAC.
“The way they were playing kind of messed us up; we didn’t
really adjust,” Butler said. “I don’t know; we just
didn’t come out to play.”
The next game for the Roadrunners will be Friday, Oct. 24 at 3:30
p.m. against the Regis Rangers.
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