Issue date: 10/25/07 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Chris Qian Pablo Morneo has his shot blocked by the Rams goalkeeper in the Gladiator's 3-0 win on Friday.

Win. This was the only thing on the minds of our Chabot men's soccer team when they took on Northern California's last place soccer team, Gavilan College on Friday Oct. 19. The Gladiators came out on top with a much needed victory, beating the Rams, 3-0.

"It feels good to finally win. This win has motivated our team and prepared us for our next opponent," said Chabot's leading goal scorer Junior Leonardo.

The past five games have been a nightmare for the Gladiators. They have lost four out of five games and settled with a tie. The men's soccer team went from being ranked as high as third in Northern California to 23rd.

With the last place Rams coming to Chabot, the Gladiators looked forward to waking up from this nightmare.

The Gladiators quickly jumped ahead of the Rams, 1-0 when defender Nick Arredondo put the ball in the goal.

The Gladiators were easily in control of the game the rest of the way. They continued to attack and move the ball with ease. The Rams tried to disrupt the ball possession but the Gladiators were way to good.

At times, it would appear as if the Gladiators were the only ones on the field who were actually out there playing soccer. The Rams looked like a team that had not practiced with each one another in weeks.

The Gladiators put another goal in the 44th minute on a corner kick pass from Daniel Valencia to Jorge Guadado. Guadado was left alone and headed the ball straight into the goal. At the end of the half, the Gladiators were up 2-0.

The second half was more of the same story for the Gladiators as they were determined to win. The team played more as a team and showed the crowd that they belong in the playoffs.
In the 58th minute the Gladiators had a corner kick that was taken by Leonardo. Leonardo's pass landed at the feet of freshman, Adrian Guzman. Guzman took the pass and buried it in the Rams net. This made the score 3-0.

"It feels like we got the monkey off our back," said head coach Tony Igwe of the Gladiators' win.

"With this win, hopefully we can start up another winning streak and make the playoffs."

As the game continued, the Gladiators just dominated the Rams. The Rams had no offense going for them. The Gladiators' goalie could have laid down and taken a nap.

Chabot just overpowered and overmatched the Rams. The Gladiators next home game is on Monday, Oct. 29.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools