The No. 8 nationally ranked Marshall Men’s Soccer won its season opener 3-0 against the Cal State Fullerton Titans at Hoops Family Field on Thursday, Aug. 22, opening the 2024 season 1-0-0.
“It was okay. We definitely still have some things to work on. It’s great when you win, but we still have things to work on,” head coach Chris Grassie said. “I just want us to further grasp the concepts of what we are trying to do, but we have to be open-minded because we do not know what is going to happen. So, if we can get that, we will be really good.”
The Thundering Herd had seven shots on goal, while the Titans only had one shot on goal, which allowed Marshall debut goalkeeper Aleksa Janjic to earn the shutout.
Other members of the team making their Thundering Herd debut include Aleksandar Vukovic, Thiago Apolinario, Rohin Kapila, Tarik Pannholzer and Lineker Rodrigues dos Santos.
“They are all fantastic players. It’s just going to take them a little bit to get used to our style of play, but they are putting in the work, they are learning, they are looking out for each other, so I’m really impressed,” Grassie said about the new members.
The game started at 7:20 p.m., and within the first 16 minutes, two cards were issued: a yellow card to senior Rodrigues dos Santos in the seventh minute and a red card
to Cal State Fullerton sophomore Fernando Valenzuela in the 16th minute.
After outshooting Cal State Fullerton in the first half 10-2, the first goal of the game came from fifth-year Aymane Sordo in the 38th minute, putting Marshall on the board 1-0.
In the 63rd minute, senior Vukovic scored in his Thundering Herd debut off a corner kick by Alexander Stjernegaard, extending Marshall’s lead to 2-0.
In the 69th minute, Marshall added another goal when a Cal State Fullerton defender scored an own goal, making the score 3-0. This was the final goal of the game.
Cal State Fullerton had its loneshot on goal in the 72nd minute, but Marshall’s defense maintained its strong performance, securing the team’s first win and shutout of the season.
A total of five cards were given during the game: four yellow cards and one red card. Two yellow cards were issued to Marshall players, while Cal State Fullerton received two yellow cards and one red card.
This was Marshall’s 13th shutout in its last 22 matches.
The Thundering Herd will travel to Xavier University on Thursday, Aug. 29, to face the Musketeers at Corcoran Field in Cincinnati. The game will start at 7 p.m.
