Jaguars coach Kyle Beard wanted his players fired up for this conference matchup. The energy he was giving pre-game could be felt from the stands.
He ran up and down the sideline throughout the entirety of the 90-minute home game Thursday afternoon against Huston-Tillotson University. For the most part he was encouraging the men’s soccer team from the sideline while also signaling out key adjustments to his defense.
“Wakeup…pay attention to what’s in front of you,” Beard called out as the players increased the intensity of the defense.
This young Jags team played one of its better games of the season against a very experienced Rams team but came up short late in the second half of the matchup that ended in a Rams victory, 1-0.
But, even more interesting was that the Jags kept the game close with an undermanned roster.
Five players were out due to injury.
“That was one of the better teams we played and we didn’t have a lot of options,” Beard said. “We were tired and we ran out of gas.”
The game came down to a minor mistake between the wing-back and midfielder that proved costly in the 74th minute as the Rams took the lead.
“We did everything we could except score, and eventually they had their chance… we didn’t quit though and that’s something I’m very proud of,” Beard said.
What’s interesting is that the Jags defense played well overall despite losing the game. Many defenders were able to get deflections off of possible shots on goal, while the goalkeeper was able to record nine saves.
By the later part of the second half, a majority of the players were experiencing an immense amount of fatigue, which was expected during a hot and humid afternoon game. Many of them drenched in sweat, while covered in grass and mud showed how the conditions of the game affected the team.
In the end, the Rams were able to head back home with a win, and the Jags suffered another defeat in conference play.
Jags freshman midfielder Chris Patterson gave his thoughts about the game shortly after the loss.
“We played good, but we could be better in some areas like attacking,” Patterson said. “But defensively we did fine…it’s just in the end there we got a little gassed.”
The next home game will be Oct. 27 against Schreiner University.
For more information and news about A&M-San Antonio’s men’s soccer teams, visit their social media accounts on Instagram @tamusa_menssoccer or follow the teams’ coverage @tamusasports on all other media sources.
