Johnathan Peña
Sports Editor
The Texas A&M University-San Antonio women’s soccer team, the Lady Jaguars, fell in their home opener 0-1 against the A&M -Texarkana Eagles Sep. 14 and ended in a 0-0 draw against the Louisiana State University-Shreveport Pilots Sep. 16.
The Men’s Jaguar team beat the A&M-Texarkana Eagles 3-0 during their home opener game Sep. 14 and maintained a winning streak when going up against the LSU-Shreveport Pilots Sep. 16: the Jags scored 3-2.
Jaguar women embrace chemistry during games
Fredy Sanguinetti, head coach of the women’s soccer team, said he had hoped for a better outcome against the Eagles since the Jaguars were giving it their all.
“The way we trained and stuck to our game plan was what we expected but not being down 0-1,” Sanguinetti said. “But we did have our chances – the girls executed the game plan to perfection.”
Junior goalkeeper Maram Abdeljabar praised the Jaguars’ defense for keeping the ball away from the home goal.
“Defense is A1 – 100%,” Abdeljabar said. “Defense is there every game being consistent, and yeah we had some hiccups here and there, but defense never backs down.”
Junior defender Jaci Vargas said the team is getting better at playing together.
“I think we all started to trust each other with each game,” Vargas said. “We know how we play, and the chemistry between us is there.”
The women’s soccer team record is 1-1-1.
Jaguar men strive for strong start in season against conference rivals: Eagles and Pilots
Roberto Jaramillo, head coach of the men’s soccer team, said he set a standard for the men to execute their game plan and have a strong start in both games.
“We wanted to have a strong start, and Texarkana is a great team with a great coach. They beat us last year, and that put us behind throughout the season, and we wanted to make it a point to start strong,” Jaramillo said.
The Jaguar men attempted 22 shots and scored three goals during the game against the Eagles.
Dante Valencia, junior forward and midfielder, subbed in the first half against Texarkana and scored the first goal. Freshman forward Amir Simpson scored in the second half with an assist from defender William Spellman. Freshman defender Layton Carpenter scored the final goal.
Simpson said that he expects a lot from this season, especially since it’s his first year on the team and the Jags are shooting for the Red River Athletic Conference (RRAC) men’s soccer tournament championship.
“We cannot do it without all the hard work from our teammates and coaches,” Simpson said. “As long as we have a bond and chemistry, we can go anywhere.”
Simpson also scored the first goal in the first half against LSU-Shreveport Pilots. Freshman forward Jacob Olivares scored one goal in the first half and another in the second half.
“Before the [LSU-Shreveport Pilots] game the team was hyped about the last win,” Olivares said. “I am feeling ecstatic.”
Olivares also said he dreams of winning the RRAC championship as a freshman.
The Pilots won the RRAC championship last year, and winning the championship would advance the Jags to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics tournament.
The men’s soccer record is 3-1.
