If the Skyhawks were looking for a stiff tuneup for the regular season, they got it Saturday.
But even without a few key players, Fort Lewis College men’s soccer proved up to the task.
FLC weathered a back-and-forth first half and pulled away in the second half for a 5-1 victory over former FLC stars in the annual alumni game Saturday at Dirks Field.
The Skyhawks, with a few new players and crisp new uniforms, showed a bit of the scoring punch they’re looking for this season early on. Jordan Alexander found himself on the end of a stiff, bounding cross just in front of the net, and he made no mistakes, burying the feed in the 14th minute for a 1-0 lead.
“Personally, I’m a goal scorer. I’m looking forward to scoring goals for the team, being in front and finishing off the plays,” Alexander said.
Less than a minute later, Alberto Capdepon found the back of the net to give the current Skyhawks a 2-0 lead over Skyhawks past, a squad that boasted more than 20 combined national championship rings.
The teams traded a few solid scoring chances from that point on until alum Keane Hamilton was tripped up going for his own rebound by goalkeeper Ryan Schaul. Derek Freeman buried the penalty kick for a goal in his first game as an alumnus, cutting the lead to 2-1.
But FLC would respond after halftime. Casey Dean carried the ball into the penalty area, pulled the goalkeeper to him, then deftly slipped a pass to a wide-open Zac Lawrence, who found the empty net in the 55th minute for a 3-1 lead. Aaron Kloer ripped a shot from about 20 yards out that caromed off a defender and went in the net in the 76th minute, and Brook Assefa took a feed from Luke Lawrence and scored from the top of the 18 in the 80th to cap the scoring.
“I think we can always look for improvement,” coach Kennedy said. “I think we took our chances very well.”
The Skyhawks were without mainstay defenders Johannes Sander and Artur Piperkov, who both sat out with injuries. As far as the walking wounded go, Kennedy said FLC will play it day by day as they try to determine who will be ready for what should be a challenging season opener Friday on the road at South Central Region foe Midwestern State, who went 10-2-5 last year and 7-1-1 at home.
“It’s going to be touch and go at this point. We’ll have to wait and see,” Kennedy said.
But with injuries come opportunities for other players, and Kennedy got a look at several new pieces Saturday, including Durango High School alumnus Tim Hubertus, who started, Elliot Prost, Tyler Miller, Luke Lawrence, Brandon Dooley and Malik Badawi.
And, as always, the alumni provided a test in a game that saw several fouls, some pushing and shoving and even a yellow card – playing out more with the intensity of a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference game than a friendly exhibition. But with a potentially tough first game looming, the Skyhawks were grateful for the push.
“It’s a great test for us. There’s a lot of All-Americans on that team. It’s a really strong team,” Alexander said. “Irrelevant of their age, they’re still quality players.”
rowens@durangoherald.com
