MMA soccer loses state-ranked matchup with Tolton 4-0, hopes for rematch

Missouri Military Academy couldn’t stay with Father Tolton all the time on Wednesday but hopes that changes by November.

MMA vs Father Tolton Photo Gallery

The Class 1 No. 4 Colonels, according to the recently released initial state rankings, lost 4-0 at home to district foe and seventh-ranked Tolton. The Trailblazers won its sixth straight meeting with MMA, and the Colonels were shut out and lost back-to-back games for the first time this season.

Head coach Elliot Goodwin said MMA knew that the importance behind Wednesday’s game wasn’t a meeting between state-ranked teams but rather a gauge of the Colonels’ progress while they faced their likely opponent in the Class 1 District 4 title game. If the Colonels make it that far, Goodwin said they need to play more consistent defense against a team of Tolton’s caliber.

“We switched off in key moments, in the first half especially in giving the goal away from a long throw-in and not being able to clear the ball effectively,” Goodwin said. “The second half followed a similar pattern where we switched off with lack of concentration for 5-10 seconds of the game. With those key areas and set pieces, they took the chances that were there that we gave them.”

The aforementioned first goal happened in the 27th minute and then Tolton rattled off 10 shots in the second half that produced three more goals, with one happening in the 78th minute while many reserves were on the field.

Despite these moments when the Colonels couldn’t stay affixed to Tolton, Goodwin said they displayed good defense throughout the game and effectively implemented the game plan at times.

“We competed all over the field,” Goodwin said. “I don’t think it was a performance where we made it easy, consistently winning individual battles, staying with men, and making it difficult for them to play. This game is easily opened up if our players quit. I don’t think we quit, but I don’t think we did things the way that we did previously.”

Tolton could run up the score against opponents because of its style of play, Goodwin said, as the Trailblazers threw a ton of bodies down the field and were persistent when attacking. The second goal scored in the 46th minute was scored by Austin Becvar, who already had two shots in the second half, with one banging off the crossbar.

“They know their strengths as a team,” Goodwin said. “They push numbers forward into the attacking half of the field, and they can find those open and creative players in the center of the field. They can hurt you when they have time, and when we can’t get pressure on the ball.”

MMA has its strengths as well as evidenced by its recent seven-game winning streak that was snapped with a 2-1 loss on Monday at Sunnydale Adventist Academy. Goodwin said the Colonels might feel low right now but had a chance to get back on track the next night in a crosstown matchup with Mexico.

The Colonels, however, lost 2-1 to the Bulldogs. Arron Gonzalez Rodriguez had MMA’s lone goal while goalkeeper Joseph Roach made eight saves. The junior varsity Colonels won 1-0 on a goal from Alberto Cortez Ramirez.

Even in the losses, Goodwin said there have been a few players that have been key to the Colonels’ offense. Each of those players either sent some shots or were in the open field against Tolton.

“Alexander McBride has done a great job for us in the wide areas and Nathan Dempsey as well,” Goodwin said. “We got to find that energy and find those players on the ball a little bit more. In central areas, we got Carlos Ontiveros. He’s been great all year, and he’s only a sophomore.”

To maintain its strong defense that has only allowed more than one goal three times — MMA undefeated instances with one goal or less — and surge to such a strong state-ranked start, Goodwin said it has taken the full team’s efforts. He said he needs everybody as the time for the potential rematch draws closer.

“Hopefully, we get another bite at them at the district championship,” Goodwin said. “That’s our goal. We want to work and get better until that point.”

MMA cross country finishes sixth in Moberly

Missouri Military Academy’s runners had a solid day on Thursday in Moberly.

The Colonels finished sixth out of 11 schools with 173 points at the Moberly XC Invitational.

Gerardo Quiroga had the best finish for MMA in 22nd with a time of 19:42, David Trevino followed in 30th with a 20:09 and Malachi Imrie finished 48th with a 21:04.