Hartsville, SC- The Coker Men’s soccer team couldn’t have asked for a better start in their first conference game of the year, as they defeated a highly talented Mt. Olive team 1-0. The game was a fight to the end as the two teams combined for twelve yellow cards and one red card. Both teams struggled early on to create opportunities through the first 50 minutes of play until the Cobras were able to break though.

In the 56^th minute, Coker Striker Dennis Gonzalez (Orlando, FL) collected a loose ball around the 18 yard box, and was able to slide it under Mt. Olive keeper Ryan McCrickard for the 1-0 lead. However, the Trojans came right back with a scoring opportunity of their own, in which Coker goalkeeper Joel Tyson (Irmo, SC) made a spectacular save conserving the Cobra lead. From there on out, both teams continued aggressive play with hard tackles coming from both sides of the ball until the final whistle blew giving the Cobras the victory.

With the win, the Cobras improve their record to 4-3 and sit at the top of the Conference Carolina’s standings at 1-0, while Mt Olive falls to 3-3 overall and 0-1 in the conference. The Cobras will travel to Erskine College on Saturday, September 15, for their next match with the opening whistle set for 7pm.