Yeomen cleat Capital 2-1

Yeoman gets three game suspension for clubbing La Roche player

Oberlin's men's soccer team beat Capital on Tuesday 2-1 and delivered their best performance of the season in Saturday's undeserved 0-1 loss to La Roche College. The home field is a very good place to be.

It was clear from the very beginning that Oberlin would defeat Capital. Within three minutes of the start of the game sophomore Sam Hopkins had already scored the Yeomen's first goal. Oberlin had taken control and would not relinquish it for the rest of the first half. The men made several attempts on goal and allowed Capital's offense to make no headway. Twenty minutes into the match junior Jon Wilson scored Oberlin's second goal. The first half continued to go well for the men and by half time the score remained 2-0.

"In the first half we scored two pretty good goals and had a good defense, but in the second half we came out complacent. We were up two goals and we knew they weren't good enough to come back. But they almost did," said junior Ian Maher.

During the second half the Yeoman looked tired. Their footwork was impressive and their attempts on goal continued, but the pace of the game was slow and the tone relaxed. Eight minutes into the second half, senior Jabali Sewicki was injured by a Capital player and had to leave the game, but after only a minute out he was back in and playing. Play continued uneventfully until 16 minutes into the second period when Capital scored. This seemed to be a wake up call for Oberlin and they started playing more intensely. Capital had trouble keeping up with the Yeomen, substituting player after player as they quickly tired.

Midway through the second half sophomore keeper Caleb Stokes and a Capital player both received yellow cards for a minor incident in the box. "There was a breakaway. I came out, and an offensive player and I slid into each other. He kept going, so I did too. It was the second time something like that had happened in the game." For the remainder of the match Capital tried desperately to score again, but the speed and talent of the Yeoman was too much for them. The game ended 2-1.

"David Lessinger and Chris Nytch played very well while overall there was some good play from just about everybody, " said Coach Chris Barker.

The weather at Saturday's game against La Roche was all too telling. It started out bright and sunny, but close to the end the sky grew dark and it began to rain. "We played the best 90 minutes of soccer we've played all season, but we didn't finish well. Finishing is a problem for us," junior, captain David Lessinger said. The Yeomen played an incredible game but were robbed of their rightful victory in the last 15 minutes by chance.

The men went into the game energetic and aggressive, apparently excited to finally be playing a home game. "It's really great to have fans cheering for you. A lot of fans turned out Saturday. We also have a nice field," Hopkins said.

Oberlin controlled the first half completely. Playing as a team, they both prevented La Roche from even coming close to scoring and made numerous attempts on goal. They played with a passion not yet seen this season. The defense showed no mercy; nothing got by them. Junior Chris Nytch and senior Russell Menyhart were especially on top of their game, quickly crushing any plays the Red Hawks attempted.

The Yeomen offense was stellar in the second half. The men started off strong and assertive. Led by midfielders Lessinger and Hopkins, Oberlin's offense bombarded La Roche with constant attempts on goal. Defense remained strong. Every time the Red Hawks thought they had taken control of the ball an Oberlin player quickly moved in and recaptured it with impressive maneuvering.

It was hard to keep up with the Yeomen as they employed their creative, skilled moves which left their opponents wondering what had happened most of the time. 15 minutes into the second half Sewicki got the crowd cheering when he kicked an out of bounds ball back in with a bicycle kick, a move more often seen in the world of professional soccer than at college games. Sewicki and the rest of the team continued to entertain the crowd throughout the match with various crowd pleasing moves. "If you've got to lose you may as well entertain the fans," Sewicki said.

Shots on goal by Oberlin were plentiful and it seemed like it was only a matter of time before the men would score. Twenty minutes into the second half it looked as though Oberlin finally had their chance. Lessinger broke away and dribbled towards the goal. He had the opportunity for a perfect shot. The crowd was on its feet; tension that had been building all game culminated in this one moment as it seemed the Yeomen would finally take the lead. Then there came the sound not of the ball swishing as it hit the net but of the whistle being blown. La Roche had fouled and play was stopped so Oberlin could take a free kick further away from the goal than Lessinger had been and in worse circumstances. Frustration amongst players was obvious as Lessinger threw himself on the ground and hit his head against the ground repeatedly. "The ref hurt us by calling the foul. We had advantage. It was frustrating and at that point we were exhausted," Lessinger said. Despite this, the Yeomen remained focused and determined.

Five minutes later the Red Hawk's had one of their sparingly few attempts on goal, but Stokes made an impressive save, catching the speeding ball straight on. There was no hope of stopping La Roche's next shot five minutes later when they scored. "He couldn't have made a better shot. It was the shot of a lifetime for him. It went in the top left corner. There was nothing I could do," Stokes said. La Roche had managed to score because one of Oberlin's player's cleats had slipped as he attempted to stop the La Roche player. It was one of only a few plays lost by Oberlin throughout the entire game.

Chance had prevented Oberlin's shots from going in and allowed La Roche to score, causing frustration which contributed to the violent turn the game took. With 12 minutes remaining things turned bloody with Oberlin player Jay Rosenthal receiving a red card for fighting. Going in to steal the ball Rosenthal and the La Roche player collided with Rosenthal landing on the player.

As they got up the player kicked Rosenthal in the stomach and he retaliated by punching the player in the face. "Jay knows he was wrong and is very sorry he did it. He's a good guy. We all make mistakes, but I know he will learn from this mistake and become a better person," Barker said. Many Oberlin players felt the referee allowed the situation to escalate by not making more calls previously in the game when things started growing violent. Rosenthal will be sitting out three games for the offense. NCAA rules mandate a two game suspension, but Barker requires a third. Rosenthal won't be eligible to play until next Saturday's game against Mount Union.

The injured player exited the field and soon the game was back on. With barely 10 minutes remaining, Oberlin remained focused and fought for the win even more, despite being short a player with Rosenthal now ejected. Defense and offense alike remained intense. It was clear the Yeomen were the better team through to the last second of play, but the final score was 0-1.

"I think we played the best we've played so far. We didn't score. Sometimes it just happens. In previous games we had problems getting opportunities. This game we had plenty; we were just unlucky," sophomore Sam Hopkins said. Most players agreed the team played well. "We were the much better team. We clicked offensively and defense was solid," Sewicki said.

Senior Russell Menyhart was cited by both players and Barker alike as an outstanding player. "I was pleased with how Russell Menyhart played overall in both games. He has never played sweeper before..., but he seems to be a quick study," Barker said. Team members also said Lessinger, Hopkins, Stokes, Nytch and Sewicki delivered truly dazzling performances.

The Yeomen host Bluffton College Saturday and Wooster College on Thursday. If this week is any indication, the games will go well. "We should get better and better. We've worked out the kinks and now we can work on game strategy," Rosenthal said.

Dribble like an infant: The menšs soccer team takes control in their 2-1 victory over Capital Wednesday. (photo by Becky Johnson)