Reno, NV - Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC) Men's Soccer played two home games recently, battling against the Snow College Badgers on Thursday, Sept. 24, in a very tight game, ending in a 0-1 loss. Men's Soccer kept the same hunger to reach victory against Colorado Northwestern Community College (CNCC) on Saturday, Sept. 26, and finished with a 2-0 win. 

The game disputed against Snow was a non-stopping performance by both teams, making it clear the game was going to be challenging and arduous from beginning to end. 

In the first half, Sawyer Morris put his consistent hard work and skills on display. The Badgers approached his goal several times, but Morris's incredible precision kept the score tied at the end of the first half.

Morris delivered a standout first-half performance, with more than five saves, sending away every shot, while diving from right to left to deny several well-placed shots. His biggest sequence came in the final three minutes of the first half. Positioning himself at the first post, he reacted quickly to a difficult shot and reached out with both hands to make the save, pushing the ball wide. Almost immediately, the Badgers launched another shot on the counter, but Morris stayed composed and again extended both hands to stop it. Two consecutive saves in a matter of seconds capped an impressive half and demonstrated his quick reactions, positioning, and ability to respond under pressure.

The Men's Soccer team tried to find the back of the net several times, but most of these opportunities were either blown dead as offsides calls or fell in the hands of the Badgers' goalkeeper. 

Brayan Caldera put Badger defenders under pressure, finding spaces between them, moving forward and creating spaces for himself. Caldera would force them into difficult challenges, where committing a foul was often their only way to prevent him from entering a 1v1 with their keeper. 

A penalty was called in the Badger's favor in the first fifteen minutes of the second half, finding the opening and only goal for the entire game, resulting in a loss for the Mighty Lizards. 

The Mighty Lizards dominated from start to finish against CNCC, winning the game with two incredible goals. Just five minutes into the match, Salvador Anguiano took the ball outside the 18-yard box, positioned himself and took a tremendous shot that went over the top of the goal. Anguiano's hunger was evident, and he made two more shots in the first half, but CNCC's keeper came out with energy, saving one and deflecting the second one. 

With only seven minutes left in the first half, CNCC's defender headed the ball and left it barely touching the line of the 18-yard box, where freshman Gavin Sibayan did not hesitate to shoot the ball as it came, and found a shelter for the ball inside CNCC's goal.

Two Goals Seal the Victory

Inspired by the1-0 score, Sibayan created more opportunities, making diagonal runs and doing give-and-go with midfielder, Landon Savri. 

During the second half, the Mighty Lizards maintained possession of the ball, played a more tactical game and took advantage of the score while keeping that hunger going. In the last three minutes of the game, Jordan Gomez found Edwin Ugalde just outside the box, where Ugalde touched it with his left, positioned himself, and struck a powerful shot with that same foot, placing it where the keeper was not able to reach and making an official victory for the Mighty Lizards. 

The second half of the Scenic West Athletic Conference (SWAC) starts on Saturday, Oct. 3 when the Mighty Lizards face College of Southern Idaho (CSI) in Utah.