Some additional rest and training helped the Carleton Ravens men’s soccer team come away with a 3-0 win over the Ontario Tech University Ridgebacks for their only game this past weekend.
Heading into the match, Kwesi Loney’s side was given an extra rest day after their game on Sept. 28 was rescheduled, and it proved to be a boost for the team yet they didn’t adjust their game plan.
“Having the extra day of training and extra day of rest coming into this game, not having to play the game the day before, is always very helpful,” said Loney.
“We wanted to make sure we took full advantage of that.”
A well organized Ridgebacks side were able to hold off the Ravens for a good portion of the first half until defender Cristopher Malekos scored a header in the 23rd minute.
Having his experience backing in the starting lineup is an added bonus, according to Loney.
“Cris is a big presence in the air, you can see that. He’s very aerial for us, great defensively, great attacking wise,” said Loney.
“He’s cut from a different cloth … another personality and added bonus.”
Going into the second half down 1-0, the opponents weren’t letting up and came back onto the pitch at MNP Park with an eye for a tying goal.
Yet the power and presence of a good defensive line from the Ravens limited the Ridgebacks to only one shot in the second half compared to Carleton’s 10.
Midfielder Dario Conte was again the mastermind on the pitch, often playing through balls and trying to find his teammates inside the box.
Karajovanovic stepped up, and cooly converted the penalty.
Having an extra man on the pitch gave Carleton yet another edge in the match as they kept looking for goals amidst keeping yet another clean sheet.
Substitute Scott Mazzotta came on and added a big presence for the Ravens.
The final goal of the game, however, came from veteran player Emad Houache who was able to solidify a “convincing win” according to Loney.
“We kept going with what we wanted to do. We started playing against more challenging teams … [and] we wanted to make sure we were patient,” said Loney.
“[We] started with a game plan and continued to execute what we wanted to execute … I was happy for my guys. ”
The Ravens now sit 9-0-0 and return to MNP Park to play their next game against Queens University on Oct. 3 at 4 p.m.
Feature Image by Tim Austen.
