Rags to riches: Eastern knocks off No. 1 Richland

In a match up of 0-7 vs 7-0, 5th-year program Eastern Oklahoma State College faced 5-time NJCAA National Champion and the current No. 1 ranked team in the country Richland JC on Friday night in Dallas.

The Mountaineers put it all together in a courageous effort to hang on for an historic win. It was an entertaining first half with Richland carrying the play and Eastern making the most of its chances when the Mountaineers had possession against a stingy opponent.  With six minutes to go in the first half, rain and lightning caused a 45-minute delay. 

Although lightning didn't strike, it felt like it did for the Mountaineers as pacey freshmen forward Tyler Pryor took a pass from captain Edgar Torres into the box for a one-on-one with the keeper. Pryor was chopped down from behind by a Richland defender as time expired in the short six minutes that remained in the period. Torres stepped up with no time on the clock and calmly nailed the pk giving Eastern it's first lead of the night. Sophomore goalkeeper Jahvanni Grant managed a clean sheet in the first half to give Eastern a chance.

The second half was full of drama as Richland leveled the score 10 minutes into the second half. But lightning did strike twice as freshmen centerback Dani Huerta found sophomore forward Chris Fresques in the box with a beautiful diagonal ball. As Fresquez turned toward goal, he was brought down from behind by a Richland defender giving Eastern the chance to go in front again with another pk opportunity. This time freshmen midfielder Maxime Guède did the honors, putting Eastern in front for good.

Eastern held on for the final 25 plus minutes with a number of great saves from Marc-Antoine Huzen and solid performances from the Eastern back line including Huerta, and freshmen defenders Leonardo Schulz and Alpha Diallo. 

In the end, the Mountaineers earned their first victory of the year 2-1 over Richland.

NOTES

- The Mountaineers notched their 1st win of the season and first program win vs a No. 1 team.
- Edgar Torres converted the first penalty kick of his career and first career goal.
- Grant and Huzen split halfs in the goal for Eastern and Huzen picked up his first career win.
- Richland bested Eastern 15-9 in shots with a 6-3 advantage in shots on target.
- Maxime Guède scored the game winner with his 2nd career goal and first career penalty kick.

Head Coach Jon Evan Speaks

"We've had a tough stretch to start the year, playing half of our season in less than three weeks and this was certainly the toughest of them all. We've battled fatigue, injury and an unforgiving schedule. Through it all our group has stuck together. I'm proud of our players our staff and our entire team. All the credit goes to them. They put in the work and all the long hours. We have been close and we knew if we kept going about our business the right way it would pay off. They earned this result and no one can ever take that away from them. This was the biggest win in the history of our young program and  was truly a team victory, everyone played a part. As nice as it was to get the result, I'm even more proud of the young men on our roster for how they have stuck together and  conducted themselves on and off the field. Our first grade checks came in this week prior to the game and man for man it was A's and B's and that says alot about them as people. They have been doing everything we have asked of them in the community as far as youth clinics as well and that makes the night even more special. I'm truly happy for them," Evan said. "Richland is Richland, and they will be there in the end competing for another national title this year. They are a very good team and very well coached, we worked hard and were a bit fortunate tonight and took care of our two big opportunities and then hung on to seal the deal. When I took the job here at Eastern, it was competing with programs like Richland that we had in mind. We've  talked about it as a program. Our guys have played some very good teams this year, and this truly  was special, but we have to realize the job's not done. We have to be more consistent. We're going to enjoy the win, but we are going to focus on Sunday and get back to work to make sure we are alot better in the second half of the season."

NOTES
Eastern returns home to face Paris Junior College on Sunday, Sept. 23 in Wilburton. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.