Eagles Soccer Opens Season with Big Road Win

Senior midfielder Alejandro Pagoada pushes the ball upfield in the Eagles season opener at Kirksville. Strong midfield play by Pagoada and his teammates helped Southern Boone claim the 2-1 win.

By: Todd Pridemore
Last Friday evening, the Southern Boone boys soccer squad traveled north to face the Kirksville Tigers to begin their season. Head Coach Wade Vandelicht enters his 5th year guiding the team, but this season he welcomes three new assistant coaches: Nicole Pagoada, Jose Pagoada, and Lajos Zadravecz. The Varsity roster also experienced turnover in the offseason. The starting lineup on Friday featured senior Emery Arnold in goal and a back line defense of Ethan Brown, Easton Cooper, Zachary Hawkins and Alex Sachs. The midfielders, wings, and forwards were Drew Dial, Alejandro Pagoada, Peyton Arnold, Blake Nichols, Brayden Watson, and Miles Butler.

Play began with both teams appearing evenly matched, but the aggressive midfield play of Pagoada, Dial, Watson, and Nichols soon turned the tide in favor of the Eagles. Thirteen minutes into play, Pagoada won the ball in the center of the pitch and chipped a pass behind the Tigers’ back line. Butler ran onto the ball and his strong shot beat the keeper and put SB on the scoreboard first. The freshman forward had a nearly identical opportunity 13 minutes later, but the Kirksville keeper made the save. Play was physical throughout the first half, with the referee showing two yellow cards – one to each team. However, the referee chose not to blow his whistle when Butler was obviously pushed down from behind on an attacking play in the Tigers’ 18-yard box.

Sophomore Brayden Watson controls the ball against Kirksville. Watson scored the deciding goal in the 50th minute of the match to seal the win for the Eagles.

In the second half, Kirksville started strong and created two quality shots in the opening five minutes. The Eagles doubled their lead, though, in the 50th minute on a misplayed Kirksville goal kick. The goalkeeper inadvertently sent the ball directly to Watson just outside of the 18-yard box. The sophomore forward calmly settled the ball and sent an accurate shot around the keeper and into the back of the net. Play tightened up as the match continued, and the Tigers finally scored with nine minutes remaining when they converted a cross from the extreme left corner all the way across the Eagles’ box for a one-touch score beyond the right post. The SB defense was able to hold on despite a desperate assault on their goal in the closing minutes. Emery Arnold collected three saves in the final eight minutes, and a total of five in the match as the Eagles claimed the 2-1 victory.

The JV match didn’t go as well for Southern Boone, with the Eagles being shut out 0-7. Jaydn Whitt, Ayden Hernandez, Zeke Weddle, and Jackson Fischer all had quality chances to score for SB, but they couldn’t find the back of the net.

The Varsity and JV’s second match of the season was Monday evening at School of the Osage, but results were not available by press time. The team will compete in the Lebanon Kickoff Tournament on Sept. 6 and 7.