Tars Soar Past Eagles

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (October 23, 2022) - The men's soccer team scored a huge win on Saturday evening defeating the Embry-Riddle Eagles 2-0 in Daytona. The win moves Rollins to 8-3-2 (4-3-1 SSC) on the year, and more importantly keeps them in the hunt for a home playoff game in the SSC tournament.

The whistles came out hot in this one as both teams were deemed a bit too aggressive on the pitch by the referees. A total of twelve fouls were called in the twelve minutes of the game. Once things calmed down, the Tars found themselves mostly in control of the first half. After missing on their first couple f scoring chances, Rollins made up for it in the 32nd minute. Jari Polm started the attack with a ball to the far corner, where Hayden Smethhurst was waiting. He then crossed the ball to a waiting Patrick Horan, who won the header over an Eagles defender. Before hitting the ground, Georgios Koliniatis was able to put a sneaky right foot onto the ball and sent it past the frozen Eagles keeper to give Rollins a 1-0 lead. 

In the second half, fouls were replaced with cards as three players received them in a five-minute span. A stout Rollins defense kept the Eagles off the board, while their patient offense would once again pay off. This time, it was Jorge Lameiras coming down the left side on a break. His cross into the box found Koliniatis, who then tapped the ball to wide open Cole Cecconi. Standing a mere three feet from the keeper, Cecconi pump faked once, and then toed the ball into a wide open right-side of the net to give the Tars a 2-0 lead, which they would hold until the final horn. 

The Tars only put three shots on goal in this one, with two finding the net. Maximillian Obermeier only recorded one save in the net, but he also tallied his third shutout of the season. 

Rollins currently stands 5th in the SSC standings, just three points behind both Florida Tech and Nova Southeastern. The Tars have two games remaining on the schedule. They face the #5 ranked Barry Buccaneers on Tuesday night, and then wrap up their season with senior night against Florida Southern on Friday, October 28. The top six seeds in the SSC make the playoffs; the #3 and #4 seeds host a first-round playoff game while the top two seeds receive a bye.  

SSC Standings