by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC
Kansas City Kansas Community College’s young soccer team suffered the cruelest kind of losses in its 2018 opener Saturday.
Deadlocked 0-0 in overtime, the Blue Devils accidentally deflected a corner kick into the net to give Neosho County a 1-0 win.
The goal on the corner kick delivered by Eduardo Carvalho came eight minutes into the overtime. The season and Jayhawk Conference opener for the Blue Devils, it was the sixth game for Neosho (4-2).
“It was a really hard-fought exciting game,” KCKCC coach Ruben Rodriguez said. “We felt it was a game we should have won but both teams had their opportunities. We’ve got an awful lot of freshmen players so I hope this will be a good learning experience.”
Neosho had six shots on goal, KCKCC five. Freshman Fabian Keblinger played all 98 minutes in goal for KCKCC.
The Blue Devils now go on the road for a Jayhawk Conference doubleheader at Cowley College in Arkansas City Tuesday. Women will kick off at 5:30 p.m. followed by the men at 7:30 p.m.