Missouri Military Academy soccer didn’t have its typical offense on Saturday during districts.
MMA went into the Class 2 District 4 tournament in Moberly without two senior captains …
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Missouri Military Academy soccer didn’t have its typical offense on Saturday during districts.
MMA went into the Class 2 District 4 tournament in Moberly without two senior captains — Fernando Puebla and Mateo Eaton — and allowed three second-half goals to lose 3-1 to Moberly. The Colonels took a 1-0 halftime lead after a goal by Emilio Perez, but they mustered seven shots in the game.
MMA head coach Rodrigo Padilla said MMA (10-8) and Moberly (17-9) were already familiar with each other after the Colonels beat Moberly 5-3 in Mexico during the second game of the season. Padilla said “soccer is a game of chance,” meaning the result can be determined by who is hungrier for a win or by what players are available.
“We didn’t have players today,” Padilla said. “Their coach told me, in their game at home, they didn’t have some players. Some of those things matter, especially in those calls and situations.”
Moberly tied the game early in the second half on a penalty kick by Gabe Runde following a foul call against MMA. Jax White gave Moberly the lead with a header goal before the Spartans tacked on with a goal by Lane Longbine.
Puebla was watching all this unfold on the sideline as he was still nursing an injured ankle. Padilla said his reigning all-state leading scorer sustained the injury during the Moberly tournament a month ago, and he wasn’t cleared to play on Saturday.
“He was still supporting on the sideline, giving me instructions and helping me like an assistant coach for today,” Padilla said with a laugh. “He was motivated, and the boys were happy (to have him there).”
Padilla said Eaton was back at home because he needed surgery to repair a torn ACL. He said the Colonels “played their hearts out” in the second half and then they couldn’t match Moberly’s offensive surge in the second half.
Emiliano De La Garza assisted on Perez’s goal and had a bigger role in the offense without Puebla. Padilla said De La Garza had to adjust to filling his new role after already adjusting to joining the team this year following a two-year hiatus from being a MMA cadet.
“We have put De La Garza on top, and he normally plays mid,” Padilla said. “Puebla and Perez feed off each other and understand the way they play because they have been playing together for two years. They understand each other’s thoughts and anticipate each other’s game.”
Padilla referred to “Forrest Gump” as he compared the MMA cadets to “a box of chocolate.” He and other coaches don’t know what boys they will get as the school prioritizes academics instead of recruiting for athletics.
The team Padilla inherited in his first year as the head coach is worthy of praise, he said, as it clinched its fourth straight winning season. The cadets did everything they could and that’s what matters.
“This week, they practiced their hearts out,” Padilla said. “They were doing everything right, and they were showing up on time. We had a great team this year. Moving up a class, the boys still challenged those big schools and proved, ‘Little MMA belongs up here.’”
