By CAYDEN SANDERS
Tiger Media Network
After a 1-0-1 weekend on the road, the Fort Hays State men’s soccer team plays its home opener tonight in a battle of two ranked teams as #3 CSU-Pueblo will face #22 FHSU hosts #3 CSU-Pueblo.
The ThunderWolves (1-0-1) opened their season with a 0-0 tie before winning 3-0 against Sul Ross State.
“It does not matter who we play; every opponent is a big opponent in this game. If you take any opponent lightly, you’re going to lose,” FHSU Head Coach Alex Nichols said. “That’s just the nature of this crazy game that we chose to love.”
The Tigers will again hit the road after their home opener, traveling to Columbia, Missouri, to play Thomas More on Sunday. Thomas More is located in Crestview Hills, Kentucky.
FHSU started the season on the road against Rockhurst and MSU Denver. The Tigers defeated Rockhurst 1-0.
“The Rockhurst game was a good result. Rockhurst is a really good team this year, and they’re always competitive,” Nichols said. “Every year, they’ve got good coaches and good players. So that was a big win for the guys.”
The lone goal in the match came from sophomore forward Juan Linares.
“The match versus Rockhurst was a very competitive match that we won with little detail and about the team,” Linarus said. “It felt good to help the team and get my first goal. We just need to continue to work hard.”
In the match against MSU Denver, the Tigers played a man down for 30 minutes. Fort Hays still managed to play to a 2-2 draw.
“We were lacking some discipline in the game against MSU Denver. There were a lot of things that weren’t good enough in that game,” Nichols said. “You can’t not be proud of fighting for 60 minutes, a man down. That’s not easy, they got a 60-minute power play, and we won that, so that’s impressive.”
For the Tigers, the next two games are all about finding who wants to fight and who has the heart.
“The fight that the majority of guys gave, not all, but the majority of guys gave it a really strong fight being a man down for 60 minutes, the majority of guys gave it a pretty strong fight for the 90 minutes, but not everybody,” Nichols said. “We’ve got a lot of belief in these guys, but we expect a lot out of everybody, and not everybody’s reaching those expectations.”
First kick for tonight’s match against CSU-Pueblo is set for 6 p.m. at FHSU Soccer Stadium. The Tigers will take on Thomas More on a neutral site in Columbia, Missouri, on Sunday. Thomas More is right outside of Cincinnati, Ohio, in Kentucky. First touch for that game is scheduled for 12 p.m.