by Alan Hoskins, KCKCC
The worst thing Johnson County may have done Tuesday night was to score two soccer goals in the first four minutes at Kansas City Kansas Community College.
Smarting from the 2-0 deficit, the Blue Devils bounced back with three goals of their own in a 9-minute span on the way to a 9-2 win that was KCKCC’s most decisive in the long-time series between the two arch-rivals.
The nine goals are the most the Blue Devils have ever put on the board against the Cavaliers and the 7-point margin of victory is also an all-time best, surpassing a 5-0 KCKCC win in 1999.
The win sets up the Blue Devils’ biggest challenge of the season thus far, a Saturday re-match at Jayhawk Conference leader Neosho County in Chanute at 7 p.m. A 4-2 winner over KCKCC Sept. 5, Neosho leads the league at 3-0-1 followed by Cowley (3-1-1) and KCKCC (3-2).
Seven Blue Devils scored goals and six players had assists against JCCC. Harmon sophomore Giovanni Calderon led the way with three goals; sophomore Ricardo Angelo scored a goal and assisted on two others; and freshman Reed Axthelm scored his sixth goal of the season and added an assist.
JCCC took a 2-0 lead four minutes into the game on two goals by Jason Wolfe.
“We made a couple of mistakes early that cost us,” KCKCC assistant coach Burke Slusher said.
Angelo got the Blue Devils on the board 19 minutes into the game with KCKCC’s first goal on an assist from freshman Hector Valles and frosh Jonas Mejias tied it with his first college goal on an assist from Gustavo Palmeiri four minutes later.
Calderon on a pass from Angelo put KCKCC ahead to stay 3-2 at the 28-minute mark and then stretched the KCKCC halftime lead to 4-2 on his second goal assisted by Brajan Huyke.
The Blue Devils dominated the second half with goals from Axthelm, Hector Valles, Calderon, Gustavo Palmeiri and Bruno Rovares with assists coming from Angelo, Axthelm and Guilherme Grave.
Sophomore Youssef Gadelkerim had saves on five of seven shots by JCCC while the Blue Devils launched 18 shots on goal, half of which went in.
“A good bounce-back effort from a bad game at Coffeyville,” Slusher said. “After we settled down and go a tie, we controlled the game the rest of the way. “Ricardo Angelo dominated in the midfield; Giovanni Calderon had a good performance and Jonas Mejias and Bruno Rovares each scored their first college goals. Now we just have to carry this success over at first place Neosho Saturday.”