Men’s Soccer Roller Coaster Season Swings Up Before Friday’s Home Finale

The eight sophomores on the 2024 Eagle men's soccer roster will be recognized before the 1 p.m. start of Friday's final home game. Many of them played key roles in Tuesday's 5-2 win at Shasta in Redding.

Agustin Mateos of Buenos Aires, Argentina, had an assist and scored 2 goals to help the Eagles build a 3-0 lead in the first half.

Defender Alfie Jenner of Seaford, United Kingdom, assisted on Mateos' first goal 10 minutes into the game.

Midfielder Yahir Alanis from Smith River assisted on the game's final goal, the second of the day for freshman Kian Herdman.

Sophomore goalkeepers Oliver Gregory of Doncaster, United Kingdom, and Benjamin Lewis of South Hampton, United Kingdom, played a half each and both had 3 saves.

Morgan Robson, a forward from Melbourne, United Kingdom, and defender Alex Lopez of Ashland, OR, made contributions against Shasta, as they have in many of the Eagles' games this fall.

Sophomore defender Joe Palmer of Slough, United Kingdom, has been playing in recent games, although he's been nursing a knee injury and unable to be on the field as much as he'd like, said Eagle head coach Ed Kephart.

Tuesday's win improved the Eagles' record to 7-8 overall and 3-3 in a tough Golden Valley Conference with four matches remaining. Friday's Sophomore Day match is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. against winless Redwoods. Siskiyous will then finish the season on the road against the three teams they trail in conference, Feather River (5-0, 10-6-1), Lake Tahoe (4-1-1, 9-6-1), and Butte (3-1-1, 9-4-3).

Kephart said the Eagles have had a roller coaster of a season but could still get into the playoffs by winning 3 of their final 4 league matches. Tuesday's win put them back on the upslope of a ride that began with five straight losses followed by six wins in a row before another three defeats.

Coach liked the way the team played at Shasta, including the efforts of some freshmen who have been stepping up. Forward Evan Stienike from Colorado got the Eagles on the scoreboard first with an assist from Mateos just 8 minutes into the game. Kian Herdman, a midfielder from South Wales, scored the first of his two late-game goals unassisted at the 86 minute mark.

Freshman midfielder Kaden Burch of Astoria, OR, the team's second-leading scorer with 4 goals and 11 points, hasn't played the last two games and was scheduled to have an MRI exam done on his knee Thursday. Kephart said Burch told him, "If it's not torn, I'm playing Friday."

Mateos leads the team with 8 goals and 17 points. Among GVC players in conference games, he's tied for third with 6 goals and ranks fourth with 13 points. Kephart said Mateos also leads the team as a captain, has a 4.0 grade point average, and "works as hard as he can in every training session."

Oliver Gregory has 69 saves in 12 games, and his average of 5.75 saves per game ranks first among all GVC goalkeepers.

The coach praised Alfie Jenner for his efforts as a team captain later in the season.

Freshman Harrison Frewin, a midfielder from Berkshire, United Kingdom, leads the Eagles with 4 assists, has scored 3 goals, and is third on the team with 10 points.

By Steve Gerace