Archers Capture Central District Championship

STLCC soccer players celebrate Central District title win

For the second year in a row, the St. Louis Community College men's soccer team is headed to the National Junior College Athletic Association National Men's Soccer Tournament.

The Archers took home more hardware on Nov. 3 by defeating Illinois Central College for the Central District Championship. At the seven-minute mark, Brandon Burton opened the scoring on a setup by Ryan Khedoo. The score remained 1-0 until 63:00, when Ricky Turcis found the back of the net on a corner kick by Ricardo Navia. Noah Vezzu gave the Archers extra insurance with a goal at 77:00 on Khedoo's second assist of the match. Goalkeeper Liam Gibbs made six saves in the 3-0 shutout, including a first-half save on a penalty kick.

With the win against ICC, STLCC improves to 18-3 on the season. The Archers have now won back-to-back Region XVI and Central District championships.

“Going to nationals is a once-in-a-lifetime event for players and coaches. For us, we are lucky to go back-to-back years. We relish this experience and the guys are going to give it everything they’ve got,” said Tim Mosby, head coach.

“This was their goal when they got recruited to play here. They knew they would get a chance to reach this level. They are valuing this opportunity and look to make the best of it,” said Mosby.

“St. Louis Community College has a winning tradition when it comes to men’s soccer, including 10 NJCAA national championships at STLCC-Florissant Valley,” said Mike Overman, director of athletics. “Coach Tim Mosby and his staff have done a great job of adding to that history, and I’m excited about the future of the program.

“Academics will always be our first priority, but we also want to provide our student-athletes with a great athletic experience. The opportunity for our men’s soccer program to compete at the NJCAA national tournament is very special,” said Overman.

NJCAA National Men's Soccer Tournament is Nov. 12-17 in Daytona Beach, Fla., with pool play taking place Monday through Wednesday. The Archers will find out which teams are in their pool on Nov. 7.