McPherson, Kan. – The Central Christian College men's soccer team kicked off their 2022 campaign with a 3-0 win at home over the Ecclesia College Royals. It was both a solid performance from the Tigers, but at the same time extremely frustrating for both players and coaching staff. The Royals, though a much improved side from previous seasons, was forced to play in their defensive third for a majority of the game, relying on counter attacks to generate movement forward. The Tigers controlled the game and found themselves on the attack and dominating the time of possession. The frustrating part was the despite taking 27 shots they only put 11 of those on frame, and of those 11, only three found the back of the net.
The Tigers led 1-0 after the first 45 minutes of play with their goal coming in the 33rd minute. Drew Schrader was in close but was thwarted by the Royal net minder. He couldn't secure it and the ball ended up back at Schrader's feet. He played the ball back outside the 18 yard box to Nicholas Arenare who bent a ball over the keeper's head to the far post, upper ninety.
After some adjustments during the halftime intermission, the Tigers scored back to back goals in the 77th and 80th minutes. The first goal of the second half came off a throw in. Edoardo Salmaso made a long throw into the box. Johnny Rodriguez settled the ball down to Marco Cherchi just outside the six yard box, and Cherchi hammered it home for his first collegiate goal. Three minutes later, Rodriguez picked up his first goal of the season from just inside the 18 on a nice pass from Schrader.
Senior Sebastian Herrera was in goal for the Tigers. He picked up the clean sheet, facing just one shot on goal from the Royals.
Coach Hoxie, who began his 11th season at the helm of the Tiger program, summed up the Tigers' performance by saying, "Good way to start off our season for sure. I was pleased with the effort and the energy output was high. We tried a few things tactically and being the first game, we could take a few liberties. The key to the game was in our approach and making sure that we were mentally engaged. The elements certainly did not make it easy. Give credit where it is due though, this is the best Ecclesia team I've seen. They are going to beat some teams here soon. They made it difficult for us."
The Tigers will take their 1-0 record back on the pitch on Friday night when they host the Sterling College Warriors for an 8:00 matchup.
