Cougars ROAR in Home Opener

By Dan Stillwell

Register-Herald Sports Writer

Around 130 fans braved hot weather to watch the Mountain State University men’s soccer team plays its first home game Saturday afternoon at Paul Cline Stadium.

They got their money’s worth.

Undefeated MSU completely dominated Kentucky Christian University, scoring three times in the first 16 minutes en route to a 9-0 victory.

“The guys were pumped up,” coach John Birkelbach said. “The crowd is much appreciated by the team and myself, and we gave them something to cheer about.”

Following some early misfires, the 3-0-1 Cougars scored three times in a four-minute stretch.

Sophomore Charlot Nacius found the back of the net twice during that span, taking the ball in unassisted in the 12th minute and firing off a Troy Beals assist in the 16th.

Nacius, a sophomore forward and one of the keys last season to MSU’s

5-11 record in its first year of varsity soccer, scored a third goal in the 88th minute from an Ali Katrib pass.

“Charlot should be getting hat tricks,” Birkelbach said of the three goals. “That is his job and I’m very proud of him.”

Katrib, MSU’s playmaker from the center-midfield position, was instrumental in setting up several shots.

He also scored a goal of his own in the 15h minute.

“Ali’s the guy we’ve got to get the ball to,” Birkelbach said. “We work our plays through him.”

Freshman Alex Cottle came off the bench to score the final two goals in the first half, and came close to a third.

It was Cottle’s first game of the season because of an ankle injury. His first shot, a screamer from 40 yards out, barely missed the top of the net.

“Alex put a lot of frustration into that shot,” Birkelbach said. “Before the game he told me he felt good. We put him in there and he did very well.”

Cottle matched Nacius’ hat trick with a third goal in the 87th minute, and he assisted on fellow Woodrow Wilson graduate Gary Taylor’s goal midway through the second half.

MSU also got a goal from forward Keith Allison, who took a through ball from defender John Gdula and then beat a defender and the keeper in the 49th minute.

KCU (0-4) took just two shots on goal. Another shot, by Andrew Oldham, went just wide of the net.

Otherwise, MSU keeper Adam Thompson and backup Michel Hiza had very little to do all game.

“We wanted a shutout today,” Birkelbach said. “We had it in our grasp in our other games.

“I told the guys I wanted high pressure on KCU, and we did that.”

Mountain State plays two games in Kentucky next week — Union College Friday and Berea College Saturday.

— E-mail:

dstillwell@register-herald.com