Statesmen Soccer Opens Season With Two Wins
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Wake Technical Community College () | 1 | 0 | 1 |
|
Richard Bland College () | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Prince George's Community College () | 0 | 1 | 1 |
|
Richard Bland College () | 2 | 2 | 4 |
The Eddie de Souza era began with a strong showing, as the Richard Bland Statesmen Men's Soccer team opened up the 2014 season with a 2-1 victory over conference foe Wake Tech Friday afternoon at Statesman Field.
Wake Tech jumped out to an early 1-0 lead in the 21st min but the Statesmen rallied back with two unanswered goals to take home a 2-1 victory. The Statesmen's first goal of the 2014 season was scored by freshman forward Godfred Obed-Baisel in the 36th minute to tie the game 1-1. The goal was assisted by sophomore MF/D Andrew Piner. The Statesmen took the lead for good in the 74th min as freshman Jerry Thomas II knocked in the game winning goal to give the Statesmen their first win of the year. Goalkeeper Kameron Smith had a strong showing saving seven of the eight shots that came his way.
The Statesmen's first year head coach Eddie de Souza, who previously was the Associate Head Coach at Longwood University, was pleased with the team's effort, "I think the players played very well and stuck with the game plan. I was pleased with their hustle and focus during the game against a very good Wake Tech team."
The Statesmen continued their opening weekend success with another victory at Statesmen Field, capturing a 4-1 win against Prince George's Community College (MD) Sunday afternoon.
The Statesmen jumped out to a 2-0 lead going into the half, behind two goals from freshman forward Oded-Baisel. The Statesmen started the second half with the same intensity getting a goal from fellow freshman forward Kevin Fredricksson in the opening minutes. The Owls were able to score a goal in the 53rd minute, but the statesmen responded with a late goal by freshman F/D Georges Weekes in the 88th minute to cement a 4-1 victory.
After the game, Coach de Souza had this to say about his team's performance, "today we got the result that we wanted but we played a little sloppy. I was expecting more from our team, so we have some things to work on. We play a very good Patrick Henry team on Friday, so we are going to have to step up our game if we expect to win on the road."
The Statesmen's next game is this Friday 8/29 at Patrick Henry Community College at 5 P.M