On Saturday, both men’s tri-campus soccer teams went downtown to the dome to play their second game of the season. The teams rode a bus downtown with UTM’s coed frisbee team, whose game was ruled a default victory when the opposing team failed to show up.
For those unfamiliar with indoor soccer rules: there are 10 players on the field (five on each team), plus the goalies. When a yellow card is given, the team must play with four players on the field.
UTM Blue played first, facing off against UTSC in the afternoon. The guys had a few more games under their belts, as they had played at a tournament the day before. They had lost all of their games at the tournament, but they were ready to redeem themselves.
Immediately after the kickoff, UTSC peppered UTM’s goalie, Mike Szewczyk, with shots. Szewczyk was a wall in the net, and UTSC’s strikers could not get the ball past him. But UTM couldn’t get a shot off either, and their frustrations showed—the players yelled “Get organized!” and “Come on, boys!” Finally, Carlos Lopez netted a goal for UTM, assisted by Ryan Tawil. By halftime, the score was 1–0 for UTM.
The start of the second half saw UTSC controlling most of the play, easily taking the ball from UTM players and again blasting Szewczyk with shots. UTSC’s first goal came by accident: the ball rolled into the net off the foot of UTM defence player Daniel Araoz, making the score 1–1. Immediately afterwards, UTM’s Salem Aboghodieh scored. UTM’s lead was short-lived, as UTSC scored three more unanswered goals, making the final score of the game 4–2.
“We kept pushing back and letting them score,” Captain Ryan Darryl Nu Nam Young of UTM commented after the game. “There were three or four yellow cards, which forced us to play short. We have to play more aggressive.” UTM Blue’s record is now 0–2.
UTM White played next against St. George Red. The Eagles started off strong: they controlled most of the play, and their goalie held control. UTM had a few shots on net, but couldn’t score in the first half. UTM’s defence was solid too, though, and they prevented St. George Red from getting the chance to cross the ball in front of the net. Eddy Dabire of UTM made some notable stops for the Eagles’ defence, and played a calm, cool, and collected game, making his skillful moves look easy. By the end of the first half, the score stood at 0–0.
St. George Red came out strong in the second half, but UTM’s defence was too good for the Reds’ strikers. UTM’s goalie, Akil Ladha, made some amazing saves, twisting and turning and jumping in ways that you’d think were impossible. He saved the day whenever St. George’s strikers got through UTM’s defence of steel. UTM’s Nolan Anderson netted a goal a few minutes into the second half off a pass from teammate Thomas Bordere, and St. George answered with their first goal a few minutes later, tying the score.
With the clock running down, UTM was hungry for another goal. Nolan Anderson netted his second goal by sliding into the ball. A few minutes later, the game was over; UTM White had won 2–1. The boys shook hands with the opposing team and walked off the field with smiles on their faces.
UTM White has a 2–0 record now—and they’re intent on keeping up their winning streak.
