FAIRMONT – The Fairmont Cardinals men’s soccer team defeated the Mankato Loyola Crusaders 14-1 on Saturday, outscoring their opponents 40-3 and securing victory heading into the final game of the regular season.
“We scored early, but I think we got a little sluggish and lazy in the first half. So we’re going to put the onus on them to play hard in the second half,” Fairmont said. The soccer manager said. Coach Brady Meyer. “I think we did it. We came back in the second half and played better. We played the way we should throughout the first half.”
Fairmont’s offense made shots, scoring early in the game off a shot by Ricardo Morales Herrera. Herrera found space in the Crusaders’ penalty area and was able to push the ball behind the opposition keeper. The Cardinals rode the momentum and scored again in the third and eighth minutes. The first goal was scored by Angle Sanchez with an assist from Leonardo Fortin, and the eighth goal was also scored by Sanchez, this time with an assist from Dani Castillo.
The Cardinals dominated the Crusader defense late in the first inning. Sanchez completed his hat-trick with his third goal in the 34th minute, and Castillo ended the first half with a goal past the keeper in the 40th minute.
The second half was a cleaner, more fundamentally driven game with the Cardinals keeping the pace on the scoreboard. Vaughn Thompson’s precise throw connected with Fortin’s header, which beat the outstretched hand of the Crusaders keeper and sealed the Cardinals’ first goal of the first half. Castillo scored again from a pass from Sanchez. Just seven minutes later, an unfortunate ricochet off a Crusaders defender led to an own goal. It wasn’t until the 54th minute that the Cardinals scored again, this time from Lewis Martin.
Jackson Bremer added to the scoring in the 58th minute, and Sanchez added another goal four minutes later. Marco Morales Chavez added another point, then converted a penalty kick for the Crusaders, who scored the first and only goal for the Crusaders with a shot from Oliver Schull. Fortin found the net one last time, securing the Cardinals’ victory.
With only a few games left in the regular season, the Cardinal’s vision has shifted to the playoffs.
“We can’t take them lightly yet and we have to prepare for the next few games. The playoffs will be here soon,” Meyer said. “So we didn’t want to be like, ‘Oh, it’s like a day off today.’ We were just really pushing, ‘Come on, let’s play our game.’ Let’s take this seriously. ”
The Cardinal will play Southern Minnesota Christian today Tuesday at Cotto Fields.
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