Knights Nipped 1-0 in Region Championship!

11.03.21

Warwick, R.I. – November 3, 2021: The CCRI Knights Men's Soccer team travelled to Bunker Hill Community College in Boston, MA to play the Bulldogs in the Region XXI Championship game with a 3pm kick-off. In a hard fought battle that was decided on an 85^th minute goal the Knights fell to the No. 9 ranked (NJCAA DIII poll) Bulldogs 1-0. The loss ends the Knights season with an impressive 10-5 record.

The 10 wins represents the most wins for the Knights under Head Coach Gabe Toro while the two Region XXI Men’s Soccer Tournament wins were also the first of his CCRI coaching career. Coach Toro is proud of his team’s success and record but is prouder of the manner in which his Knights played during the year: never giving up no matter the circumstance, playing together and always playing with and displaying class on and off the pitch.

The Knights played the Bull Dogs earlier in the season and lost 5-0. Coach Toro had other plans for this encounter. Before the game, Toro took the time to thank the team for all their efforts and dedication in giving the school the best season in over 10 years. Coach Toro and assistant coach Mike Jerue applauded the team made up of all freshmen, with the exception of the goal tender, Ednilson Tavares (Pawtucket, RI).

The Knights came out ready to take it to the Bulldogs. Controlling the midfield was key for the victory today and Aaron Ramos (Warwick, RI), Daniel Tinoco (Providence, RI) and Joustin Rivera (Providence, RI) did not disappoint as they created chances and opened up lanes in the Bulldog defense. Rivera had an excellent game, as he retrieved balls like he did all year, but his technical abilities improved throughout the season and they were on full display today in the final, as he dribbled by Bulldog players all day. In several occasions, the only way to stop Rivera was to foul him and bring him down. Aaron Ramos and Daniel Tinoco also contributed to the offense as they took different looks at the goal throughout the game. Co-Captains Pablo Puac (Pawtucket, RI) and Wilson Penafiel (Providence, RI) played out on the wings and definitely left their mark in the game. Puac played with his mask to protect an injury and was very brave engaging in the physical nature of some of the Bunker Hill players. Coach Toro mentioned “That courage and bravery are words to describe his entire team this year, they liked to battle and they never gave up.” Up top Thiago Pereira (North Providence, RI) completed the triangle of attack for the Knights. Pereira had some chances as he combined with Joustin Rivera and his teammates to find holes in the Bulldog defense. The half would end in a 0-0 tie.

In the second half, the Knights wanted to keep fresh legs in the game to create more pressure and chances to push forward. Rico Foster (Cranston, RI) and Max Rodriguez (North Providence, RI) put forth great shift to keep the pressure on the Bulldogs. Ethan McDermott (Cumberland, RI) also reinforced the midfield to give Daniel Tinoco and Joustin Rivera a break during the match. The Knights defense also had an excellent game, with Cristian Justiniano (Providence, RI), Fabian Mueller (North Kingstown, RI) leading up the back line. Matt Gibeau (Warwick, RI) also had another standout game. Gibeau has been the picture of consistency all year, outstanding defender but also with a great ability to attack and go forward past defenders. The Knights also utilized Busime Yosta (Pawtucket, RI) as the outside back opposite of Gibeau. Yosta was coming back from injury and was rested for a few games, specifically to try to get him in the final game. Adnel Lopez (Cranston, RI) and Nick Guertin (Cranston, RI) also were ready to go to come in and help the team maintain its excellent defensive front. Co-captain Ednilson Tavares, in the goal for the Knights made big saves all game as the Bulldogs kept attacking trying to find their No. 9 and best player Arnaud Abdoun. The Knights were able to control him and push him towards the side lines, limiting his shots throughout the game. CCRI had chances to score, but were not able to put the ball in the back of the net. Coach Toro commented: “In soccer, if you cannot finish, strange things happen and in the game. It can be cruel sometimes, because in on instant things can turn on you. This is what happen in today's game.” With under five minutes to play, the Bunker Hill’s aforementioned Abdoun found himself in the Knights 18 yard box. He was able to get off a shot that hit a Knights boot, which made the trajectory of the ball change and instead of directly heading towards Ednilson Tavares' direction where he was making saves all day, the ball chipped up in the air on a slow rainbow type arc way beyond Tavares’ reach and it bounced once before going into the back of the net. Coach Toro commented that "a goal like that was the hardest part of the entire game, getting beat by a real nice goal would have been less painful."

The Knights kept fighting despite the clock ticking away. Aaron Ramos and Pablo Puac kept pushing forward, having shot or two on net. The Bulldogs, when they got possession, kept pushing the ball to the corner on the Knights end, trying to waste time and hoping for the clock to run out. Matt Gibeau and Busime Yosta both worked together to win possession away from the Bulldog in a fight for the ball in the corner. The Knights won a final goal kick before the official ended the game, leaving the score at 1-0.

Overall, the Knights played a great game and made the final a fantastic game to watch. The Bunker Hill players came over to the half field line near the Knights bench soon after the whistle and applauded the effort and the sportsmanship that the Knights displayed today in the final. Coach Toro applauded back and was happy to see this sign of respect between teams. Toro commented: “It was a pleasure being part of this team. We always talk to our players about discipline and respect and it was great witnessing the other Region XXI champions showing their discipline and respect back to our team.

Toro is hopeful that all the freshmen return next year to continue to campaign and back in the final. At the end of the game Coach Toro congratulated the Bunker Hill coaches and told them “We will be back next year!!”

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The Community College of Rhode Island, New England’s largest comprehensive community college, enrolls nearly 10,000 students in credit courses and thousands more in non-credit and job training classes. Its athletic program boasts 12 varsity programs and an academic support program for all student-athletes.