The Colorado College men’s soccer team has been busy the past two weeks, bouncing back and forth between conference and non-conference play. The Tigers now sport a 12-5 record, but they have struggled on the road, with losses against Texas Lutheran University and Southwestern University on Oct. 12 and 14. The Tigers quickly rebounded for a pair of wins at home against Johnson & Wales University and Centenary College.
Aiming for their sixth road victory, the Tigers struggled against Southwestern. Starting goalkeeper Keller Mochel ’20 was substituted in the 29th minute after taking a shot from point blank range. The injury wasn’t too serious, as he was able to play two days later against Johnson & Wales. To add insult to injury, defender Griffin Wesley ’19 was sent off in the 71st minute, allowing Southwestern to capitalize and take a 3-2 victory. The tough loss seemed to motivate the Tiger squad, as they soundly defeated Johnson & Wales 2-0 thanks to a pair of goals from midfielder Will Mallory ’21. The game was tied with just five minutes left in regulation when Mallory notched the game winner on a deflection from a beautiful assist delivered from defender Jackson Silverstein ’21. Mallory has been electric this year in game deciding situations, factoring in five game winning goals where he’s scored three and assisted two.
The Tigers continued their home stand a few days later, where they battled SCAC rivals Centenary. The game was aggressively played on both ends of the field, with the teams combining for 19 fouls. Henry Schuler ’19 was the difference maker for the Tigers, rocketing a header in the 76th minute into the back of the net. Head coach Scott Palguta praised Schuler’s work ethic throughout the game. “He continues to be a rock in the back for our team,” Palguta said. “He turned in a real captain’s performance today and got the all-important goal we needed. We really struggled to solve the packed Centenary defense through the run of play.”
The two dynamic performances at home earned “SCAC Player of the Week Honors” for the second time this season. Scoring or assisting on all three goals, Mallory was a constant threat to the Johnson & Wales and Centenary defense every time he attacked. Hayden Cogswell ’20 says the team is ready for the tough competition ahead of them this week; “I think we really are trying to focus on not making any mistakes against Trinity this weekend. Trinity is top of the SCAC and have played well this season, and when you’re playing against a strong side such as them it’s important not to give them any easy opportunities with silly mistakes … We just need everyone to be dialed in and it’s gonna be really competitive.”
The Tigers will play their Senior Game on Oct. 28 against Schreiner University. The game will be played at 7 p.m. on Washburn Field. Come out and support your Tigers!