The Basics

Score: Evangel 5, Ecclesia 0 | Box Score

Record: Evangel (1-0-0), Ecclesia (0-2-0)

Location: Springfield, Mo. (Coryell Field)

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Valor Men's Soccer opened their 2024 campaign on a rainy Saturday (Aug. 24) afternoon, looking for their first win of the season against the Ecclesia Royals. A strong second half of play proved to be the difference in the match, as a four goal barrage pushed the Valor to a 5-0 win to open the year.

After a nearly two and a half hour delay, the Valor took the field and got to work quickly. A shot attempt by Akari Sydney was blocked by the Royals keeper, but found the feet of Ted Okoroh who buried a shot in the back left corner of the net, giving Evangel a 1-0 lead. After the early goal, which was just 3:30 into the game, both offenses stalled out. Strong defensive play from both teams kept the rest of the half scoreless, as the Valor took a 1-0 lead into the halftime break.

After making halftime adjustments, the Valor came out firing in the second half. Evangel's first goal came on a strong pass from Igor Ovcarevic that Caleb Kuchta buried in the lower right hand corner of the goal, after a 1-on-1 against the keeper. 16 minutes later, Chris Tadeo came in and make an immediate impact, scoring on a pass from Andrea Fincato to put EU ahead 3-0. Fincato would not be done with his action on the day, as Micah Siems found the forward who scored the fourth goal for Evangel. Rounding out scoring on the day was Eneh Chibozor, who made a move against a defender to get loose, scoring to put the Valor ahead 5-0, solidifying the EU win.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Evangel outshot Ecclesia, 21-12, in the win on Saturday.

• The Valor win was the second consecutive in season openers.

• Andrea Fincato's goal in the second half was the first of his career with Evangel.

QUOTABLE

"After a two and a half hour delay for lightning, our guys had to mentally restart after coming on to the field and being sent back twice. That can get to you if you let it. Our young team had to pull together through the fatigue and play together. We have been shuffling a few players to find the correct mix through preseason and we did a little bit of that today as well," Men's Soccer Head Coach Kyle Beard stated. "From a coaches perspective, it's always great when you sub and the subs change the game. That was exciting today. Caleb Kucht came in and really dug into the other team to make some things happen. His goal was just hard work and great placement. We have a lot of new guys and after taking the time to get their feet, they have really started to gel today and the second half was really pretty soccer. They have started to read each other better and better on the counters and when we gain the ball. Proud of our guys today!"

UP NEXT

Evangel Men's Soccer remains at home next Friday (Aug. 30) night, taking on Mission University at 7:00 p.m.

For the latest information on Evangel Athletics, visit Facebook at Facebook.com/EvangelValor, Twitter (@EvangelValor), or EvangelAthletics.com. Fans can also receive updates on their favorite EU teams by downloading the Evangel Athletics Gameday App through the App Store or Google Play.