Posted: Nov 06, 2022
SHERMAN, TEXAS – Third-seeded University of St. Thomas won its second-straight SCAC Men's Soccer Tournament championship with a 3-1 come from behind victory over top-seeded Trinity University at Jerry E. Apple Stadium on the campus of Austin College. Official Championships Website | Photo Album | Tournament Stats | Interview w/ St. Thomas Head Coach Ian Clerihew | Interview w/ St. Thomas sophomore Daniel Castro
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Trinity opened the scoring in the first half when Jack Downes off the bench buried a shot delivered from his right foot into the side netting to give the Tigers a 1-0 lead in the 31st minute.
- St. Thomas answered just over six minutes later when Taty Aleman sent a through ball into space and Daniel Castro got on the end of it, slotting it home to even the match at the 36:26 mark.
- Tied at 1-1 coming out of the break, St. Thomas took the lead less than four minutes into the second half as Castro got behind the Tiger defense once again but elected to pass it back across the goal to teammate Ayomide Salako for the go-ahead tally.
- Down to just 10 men after Salako was sent off for a red card in the 59th minute, Castro put an exclamation mark on the match when he rose above the Trinity defense and headed away his second goal of the game off a Dany Ramirez cross to double the Celt lead with less than half an hour remaining.
- Trinity was unable to take advantage of an extra man on the field before Tiger defender JonConnor Rule was shown a red card in the 76th minute, allowing the Celts to see the game out and claim their second-straight SCAC Tournament title.
- A physical match that saw nine yellow cards and two red cards, Trinity was whistled for 13 fouls to St. Thomas’ nine.
- Trinity outshot St. Thomas, 16-15, but the Celts edged the Tigers 7-4 in shots on goal. Each team attempted six corner kicks apiece.
UNIVERSITY OF ST. THOMAS STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
- Daniel Castro (F): 2 goals, 1 assist, 5 shots, 3 shots on goal
- Taty Aleman (F): 1 assist, 3 shots, 1 shot on goal
- Ayomide Salako (F): 1 goal, 1 shot, 1 shot on goal
- Dany Ramirez (MF): 1 assist, 2 shots
- Rodrigo Lazo (GK): 90 minutes played, 1 goal allowed, 3 saves
TRINITY UNIVERSITY STATISTICAL STANDOUTS
- Jack Downes (MF): 1 goal, 1 shot, 1 shot on goal
- Michael Somerville (F): 3 shots, 1 shot on goal
- Chen Adjei (MF): 2 shots, 1 shot on goal
- Juan Carlos Vidales (GK): 90 minutes played, 3 goals allowed, four saves
NOTABLES
- Daniel Castro of St. Thomas was named Offensive Tournament MVP while teammate Ivan Leon earned Defensive Tournament MVP laurels.
- Castro’s two goals is the first multigoal performance in an SCAC Tournament final since Centre College’s Chris Olney scored twice in the 1991 title game.
- St. Thomas has now appeared in three-straight SCAC finals and joins Trinity as the only program in SCAC history to win back-to-back SCAC Tournament crowns.
- Trinity falls to 18-6-2 all-time in SCAC Tournament history.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
- Curtis Hale, So., D (Colorado College)
- Alexander Ward, Jr., D (Colorado College)
- Jackson DeHaven, Jr., F (Southwestern University)
- Michael Grimm, So., MF (Southwestern University)
- Fraser Burns, Sr., MF (Trinity University)
- JonConnor Rule, Sr., D (Trinity University)
- Louie Instrall, So., MF (Trinity University)
- Ayomide Salako, Sr., F (University of St. Thomas)
- Hamilton Estrada, So., MF (University of St. Thomas)
- Ivan Leon, Jr., D (University of St. Thomas) – Tournament Defensive MVP
- Daniel Castro, So., F (University of St. Thomas) – Tournament Offensive MVP
UP NEXT
As SCAC tournament champions, St. Thomas (14-1-3), will receive the league’s automatic berth into the NCAA Division III tournament and will find out its opponent when brackets are released tomorrow.
