It took exactly one minute for the Men’s Soccer team to set the tone against the visiting Terra State Titans on Friday, September 27. Sophomore forward Kevaughn Harris opened the scoring in the first minute for the Ocelots and the team never looked back, blanking the Titans, 16-0.

The Ocelots and Titans shared the same formation, the 4-2-3-1, (4 defenders in the back, 2 midfielders more focused on defending, 3 midfielders more focused on attacking, and a sole striker). The team executed the formation better with their playmaking combination and deadly crossing opportunities. 

In the first half, the Ocelots were breaking down the Titan’s defense, exploiting their weak zonal defense and inconsistent man-to-man pressure.

In the seventh minute of the game, Pablo Martin scored from outside the box with a powerful instep kick. The ball was assisted by Ziad Barakat, who delivered a short pass after his teammates broke down the Titans’ defense with precise passing. The Titans’ goalie couldn’t react quickly enough to get a touch on the ball, making the score 2-0.

The Ocelots continued to press in the Titan zone. One minute later at he 14th minute, Adriano Shauya scored an easy tap-in with the goalie nowhere in sight. Gavin Lamere assisted with a fast, low ground cross, but the main focus was on Ziad Barakat, who delivered a beautiful through pass to Lamere, threading it past four Titans defenders. The score is now 5-0.

In the 16th minute, Rani El Hajj Ahmad scored through the goalie to make the score 6-0. El Hajj Ahmad’s impressive footwork allowed him to dribble past three Titans defenders before passing to Adechina Moussedikou, who waited for the defenders to pressure him, creating an opening for a through pass directly to Rani to seal the deal.

At the 17th minute, the players were scrambling, but Adechina Moussedikou managed to score a quick goal past the goalie. Rani El Hajj Ahmad was getting the ball through when the defender managed to touch the ball that was being passed to Marco Pomponio. Pomponi used the outside of his right foot to touch the ball, and as he wanted the shot, Adechina came in and changed the score to 7-0.

Daniel Patino scored at the 29 minute mark from a counterattack that Patino himself created. After he stole the ball from the Titan’s forward, Patino passed it to Rani El Hajj Ahmad, who dribbled the ball slightly and waited for Patino to pass by him. El Hajj Ahmad passed the ball to Patino, who shot in the bottom right corner, making the game 8-0.

In the 32nd minute, Luan Gargiolli made a sensational goal as he dribbled past four Titan defenders to shoot the ball with his weak foot. Rani El Hajj Ahmad assisted the ball to Gargiolli, who was facing the opposite way, away from the goalie, as well. Gargiolli turned around and performed a magical feat, making the game 9-0 at the end of the first half.

In the second half, Head Coach Rick Larson turned to the bench letting his secondary players get some playing time as well. 

In the 50th minute, we saw a clear dismantling of the Titan’s defense. Adriano Shauya received the ball from his teammates who were making short passes to each other, opening gaps within the defense. He ran down the left side and assisted the ball to Kevaughn Harris, who took the shot from close distance, giving the goalie no time to react. The game is 10-0.

In the 54th minute, Daniel Patino passed the ball to Gavin Lamere, who was in deep forward, right side of the pitch. He touched the ball and dribbled it a few feet more, passing it through two Titan defenders. Pablo Martin picks up the ball and taps it in for an open net, making the game 11-0.

In the 55th minute, Ziad Barakat dribbled past four Titan defenders and right in front of their goalie, just to pass the ball to Kevaughn Harris using his outside weak foot. Kevaughn then scores an easy tap-in, making the game 12-0.

In the 57th minute, Ziad Barakat passes the ball through to Kevaughn Harris, who makes a run on the right side of the field. He passes to an open Adriano Shauya, who lets the ball pass him, deceiving the Titan’s defense and their goalie. Then Ziad comes in from behind to take the shot, shoving the ball in the left corner, making the game 13-0.

In the 65th minute, the Titan defenders are confused as they don’t know how to defend against the Ocelots anymore. Adriano Shauya received the ball, but there was no pressure from the Titans, giving him enough time to pass Pablo Martin, who scored a screamer outside of the box, right into the upper net, making the game 14-0.

In the 80th minute, Nikolas Nareike worked well with Finn Stafford as Nareike controlled the ball and Stafford swiftly retrieved the ball from his feet. The defenders weren’t ready for the quick one two, and Stafford used that slight moment of pause from the Titan defense to pass the ball to Ravaughn Hyman, who scored the easy tap-in, making the game 15-0.

In the 85th minute, Luan Gargiolli scored an easy goal, assisted by Marco Pomponio. Pomponio passed the ball through a tired Titan defenders, where Gargiolli wrapped up a dominant performance from the Ocelots, making the game 16-0.

Leading scorers for the Ocelots were Pablo Martin (4 goals) and Kevaughn Harris (3 goals).  Adriano Shauya and Rani El Hajj Ahmad had three assists each. 

Sophomore defender Billy Bingham gave his perspective on the team and the game itself. 

“With facing a smaller team, we used this opportunity to work on some new things as a group,” said Bingham. “Overall, I’m happy that all the players who don’t get a lot of minutes, usually, got in the game and got them moving around.” 

Assistant Coach Johnny Garcia was ecstatic that the team brought in the energy and intensity throughout the entire match. 

The Ocelots are 5-2 overall and 1-0 in the conference.

Next up, the team travels to Jackson College on October 2 for a 2 p.m. match. 

For up to date information on the Men’s Soccer team go to www.schoolcraftocelots.com.