SHREVEPORT, La. -- Playing on its home field, Centenary College won its first-ever SCAC Men’s Soccer Championship Sunday afternoon, defeating University of St. Thomas on penalty kicks, 5-3, after the two battled to a scoreless draw through two overtime periods. Official Championships Website | Interview w/ Head Coach Kyle Symczak | Interview w/ Senior Midfielder Greg Petreas | Tournament Stats | Photos
In penalty kicks, the Gents converted on all five of their attempts as Jaron Petreas smashed home the victory-sealing PK sending the home fans into hysteria as Centenary claimed stake to its first-ever SCAC Men’s Soccer title. The last men’s soccer title for Centenary came in 1990 as members of the NCAA Division I Trans America Athletic Conference (now the ASUN Conference).
HOW IT HAPPENED
- St. Thomas controlled possession a majority of the match, outshooting the Gents 22-11, including a 5-2 edge in shots on goal.
- Centenary goalkeeper Sami Borchalli maintained a clean sheet for the second straight match, making five saves in net. St. Thomas’ Rodrigo Lazo was credited with two saves.
- St. Thomas also held a 6-1 advantage in corners.
- With neither team able to find the net in regulation or either of the overtime periods, the men’s final went to PKs for third time time in tournament history. The two previous times the SCAC Title was decided at the spot was in 2018 and 1992.
- In the penalty kick session, Centenary put the pressure of St. Thomas, kicking first and went a perfect 5-for-5 as Andres Bautista, Rene Escobar, Greg Petreas, David Barbera and Jaron Petreas all calmly converted their attempts. The Celts’ Tom Hultsch, Andres Marquez and Oscar Aragon all finished their attempts with a Sami Borchalli save on Dany Ramirez in round two being the difference maker for Centenary.
CENTENARY COLLEGE STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
- Andres Bautista (F): 2 shots, 1 shot on goal
- Marco Basteris (D): 1 shot, 1 shot on goal
- Jaron Petreas (MF): 2 shots
- Sami Borchalli (GK): 5 saves
UNIVERSITY OF ST. THOMAS STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
- Agustin Banos (D): 2 shots, 2 shots on goal
- Dany Ramirez (F): 3 shots, 1 shot on goal
- Joshua Lockhart (F): 2 shots, 1 shot on goal
- Andy Garcia (MF): 2 shots, 1 shot on goal
- Rodrigo Lazo (GK): 2 saves
NOTABLES
- Andres Bautista, who converted on his penalty kick and scored the opening goal of the tournament for Centenary in the quarterfinal round, was named the Offensive Tournament MVP.
- Sami Borchalli was named Defensive Tournament MVP. Borchalli finished the tournament with 17 saves, allowing just one goal and posted two clean sheets in 310:00 minutes of action.
- 2020-21 marks the first time in SCAC Tournament history a team advancing out of the quarterfinal round has lifted the trophy as conference champions, playing three matches in three days.
- The title represents just the third conference title the institution since joining the SCAC prior to the 2012-13 academic year. Centenary won the SCAC baseball championship in 2017 and the SCAC men’s basketball championship in 2019.
- In the SCAC postseason tournament Centenary holds a 1-1-2 record.
- Centenary is the second program in SCAC Tournament history to win the title on home soil, Trinity accomplished the feat back in 2012.
- Centenary ends the abbreviated 2020-21 season with a record of 4-5-3 while St. Thomas ends its season at 5-2-4.
