Photos by Tyler Sym
Backed by strong defensive play and important goals from senior forward Caden MacKenzie and first-year midfielder Hayden Cogswell, Colorado College topped Centenary College and Austin College at home this past weekend. CC’s defense only ceded one goal, ending a shutout streak that spanned four games previously.
“When we play at home, we really want to impose our will on our opponents and we were able to find early goals in both games, which clearly put the momentum in our favor,” said Head Coach Scott Palguta. “I thought our guys did an outstanding job of getting on the front foot early in both matches.”
The Tigers certainly got on the board early against Centenary, with Cogswell pouncing on a deflected ball and putting it into the right side of the net just six minutes into the game.
“Cogswell continues to grow and we have been very impressed with his versatility,” Palguta said. “This past weekend [Cogswell] played in five different positions for us and did a nice job in each. It was great to see him get on the scoreboard on Friday—a just reward for his strong play.”
Junior midfielder Tim Huettel shot a direct kick from 23 yards out into the upper left corner 3:34 into the second half to double CC’s lead. Sophomore forward Daniel Krueger took a cross from Huettel and found the back left corner of the net, providing all the insurance CC would need to wait out the final 15 minutes of play.
The Tigers hit the pitch again on Sunday afternoon, looking to secure a win against Austin College, which currently sits in the fifth position in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference standings.
MacKenzie struck from the penalty spot in the 20th minute to give CC a 1-0 lead. MacKenzie would find the back of the net again 14 minutes into the second half after Huettel played a ball off his head to MacKenzie, who beat Austin goalkeeper Joseph Khalaf. Although CC’s two-goal lead was short-lived, they were able to hang on to get the victory by a final score of 2-1.
“The two wins this past weekend were a real group effort,” Palguta said. “We received strong contributions from starters and bench players in both games and that is the sign of a good team.”
Defensive performance is often a difficult individual metric to measure, but the easiest way to evaluate a team’s defensive play is to simply look at how many goals have been scored against the Tigers this seaso; CC’s defense has allowed only four goals. They have nearly tripled their opponents’ shots thus far, and have continually allowed fewer corner kicks than their opponents.
Senior midfielder Soren Frykholm was honored as the SCAC’s Defensive Player of the Week last week. Frykholm, who is also a team captain, has been the team’s anchor in the middle of the field, according to Palguta. “[Frykholm] is our leader and lynchpin in the middle of the field. He does such an outstanding job winning his individual battles and covering for teammates who make mistakes,” he said. “He does the gritty, thankless work in midfield and never seems to get enough recognition. I was pleased he received conference Player of the Week honors.”
CC has played well as of late, but one of their biggest challenges by far will be tonight when they face top-ranked Trinity University, who currently sits atop the SCAC standings, one place higher than CC. Trinity bested CC 2-1 in their first meeting of the season, and the Tigers are eager to try to get back at them at home tonight.
“We always try to impose our will on our opponents and force them to make adjustments,” said Palguta. “Of course, any time a top-ranked team comes to town the stakes are a little bit higher, so I expect there to be some added intensity. We’re hoping for a great game and wonderful support from the CC community!”
Kickoff against Trinity University is at 7 p.m. tonight at Washburn Field. The Tigers will face off against Schreiner University at noon on Sunday, when they will play at Stewart Field.