The Grand Rapids Community College Men’s Soccer team looked to bounce back from their loss to Aquinas on Monday, as the Raiders faced Lake Michigan College on Wednesday, Sept. 5. In typical dominant fashion, the Raiders defeated the Red Hawks 9-0 led by freshman striker’s Mohamed Tamour and Elijah Maas.
“We felt that it was time to lock in after the loss,” GRCC head coach Damiekco Smith said. “That we are not invincible and that although Aquinas was technically a scrimmage, it was a huge wake up call that someone has to pay for.”
GRCC displayed heavy intensity early in the game, as LMC had a yellow card only two minutes into the game, and the Raiders responded with two goals in the first 10 minutes. Maas scored both goals within two minutes of each other, which fired up GRCC.
Soon after, Tamour added to the scoreboard, scoring two goals within five minutes to increase the lead to 4-0. Both goals were scored in the bottom corner of the goal.
Towards the end of the half, Tamour notched himself a hat-trick as he scored for the third time with a few minutes remaining in the half. GRCC headed into halftime with a 5-0 lead over the Red Hawks.
The Raiders outshot the Red Hawks 24-1 in the first half, including 12 corner kicks for GRCC. The game seemed like it was out of LMC’s grasp, which was true, but that did not stop them from competing while also causing a few altercations during the second half.
Prior to any altercation, the Raiders came out of halftime with a ‘win or go home’ mentality as freshman defender Chase Laarman scored five minutes into the second half. Freshman Jaret Jaramillo scored only two minutes later off of an assist from Tamour.
Around the 75-minute mark, Balkeerat Sahota got in a scuffle with some Red Hawk players, which ended in a yellow card for Sahota. Later in the half, LMC freshman Isreal Carrasco received his second yellow card of the game, which led to his ejection.
Despite all the arguing that occurred, the Raiders controlled the game’s flow, leading to a 9-0 victory.
GRCC out-shot the Red Hawks 47-3, freshman goalkeeper Brett Miller recorded the only save for the Raiders, and combined for 18 corner kicks. Freshman goalkeeper Jonathan Garcia also received playing time in the final 15 minutes of the game, as over 85% of the team played throughout the win.
After another shutout victory, the Raiders improved to 5-1 on the season with a 4-0 conference record. GRCC faces the Red Hawks in back-to-back games as they travel to Benton Harbor on Saturday, Sept. 9 at 3 p.m.
