Rustlers finish up the season
The Lakeland Rustlers Men's Soccer team was on the road for the final weekend of the regular season, heading south to take on the Medicine Hat Rattlers and Lethbridge Kodiaks.
First stop for the Rustlers was Medicine Hat to take on the Rattlers. The Rattlers opened the scoring in the 11th minute, giving them the early 1-0 lead. As the first half continued, the two teams battled back and forth, with the Rustlers trying to tie the game, while the Rattlers were looking to extend their lead. Neither team was able to score until the second half when the Rattlers extended their lead to 2-0 in the 60th minute. The Rustlers fought back and cut into the Rattlers lead on a goal by third year fullback Troy Trench in the 62nd minute. Just minutes later, Trench would score again to tie the game at two. Trench continued to dominate the second half, putting the Rustlers on his back, helping them fight for a win. Trench would add one more goal in the final minutes to give the Rustlers the 3-2 lead.
With three second-half goals, Trench was named Player of the Game for the Rustlers.
The Rustlers were in Lethbridge Sunday for their final game of the regular season. The Kodiaks controlled the game early on, but Rustlers 3rd-year goalkeeper Zach Wagner made some big saves for his team. Later in half, the Kodiaks were able to beat Wagner twice in a matter of minutes, giving them the lead. The Rustlers weren't about to roll over and let the Kodiaks maintain control, with 1st-year midfielder Keilan Hozempa scoring in the 40th minute. Neither team would score in the final minutes of the half, giving the Kodiaks the 2-1 lead heading into the second. The Rustlers had the momentum early in the second half, with 2nd-year fullback Brennan Liebscher scoring two goals within the first ten minutes of the half. The Rustlers would give up another goal to the Kodiaks in the 70th minute but came away with a 3-3 tie in their final game of the season.
With two second half goals, Liebscher was named Player of the Game for the Rustlers.
Rustlers goalkeeper Zach Wagner spoke about changes and improvements he saw from the team over the season. "We've all gained confidence in each other," Wagner said, "and that has helped us play well and keep every game close. We knew if one person made a mistake, everyone had his back which took off a lot of pressure of being afraid to make a mistake. Our goal heading into this weekend was to finish the season strong. We have worked hard this season, so it was nice to get a couple of wins at the end."
With the win and the tie on the weekend, the Rustlers finished the regular season 6th in the ACAC South Division with a 2-6-4 record, missing the playoffs. The Rustlers will now turn their attention to futsal, hoping to build off of the improvements and late success from the soccer season.