Elizabethtown College’s men’s and women’s soccer teams played on Oct. 10 in a game called “Kicks for Cancer,” which was created to show their passion and gain support for cancer awareness and find the cure for cancer itself.
Etown’s men’s and women soccer teams battled the two Alvernia University teams and left victorious with two notches in the winner’s bracket.
The key for both Etown victories was their defense, as they held strong throughout both of their games. Both teams dressed in special warmup uniforms to show their support for the cure for cancer and to symbolize that the game was hosted by “Kicks for Cancer.”
The men’s team for Etown had their hands full against Alvernia’s squad but were able to squeeze out a solid 1-0 conference victory. The goal was scored in the 32nd minute by sophomore Dylan Sisler (2) and the assist was credited to first-year Martin Fevre (5). The game was a true battle back and forth as both teams could not find a solid way to score. The Blue Jays got the ball to bounce in their favor as they were able to take a 1-0 lead early on in the game; however, that was the only goal scored in the match.
Alvernia could not get the ball to fall the right way as most of their shots were off-target, leaving the Blue Jays with a somewhat easy matchup. Goalkeepers for both teams each had three saves in the contest, as it was a true defensive battle.
The Etown women’s soccer team dominated Alvernia, leaving with a victory of 4-0. First-year Deanna Slater scored the first goal in the 17th minute. She was set up by her teammate first-year Lauren Fredericks, who displayed excellent passing. The next goal was courtesy of first-year Kaceyanne Cerankowski as she was assisted beautifully by Fredricks. But this wasn’t the end of Cerankowski’s show as she added another goal in the 49th minute. The shot came from outside 18 feet away and placed perfectly past the keeper. Alvernia did not seem to have an answer for the Blue Jays, but Etown wasn’t finished just yet. Junior Alyssa Koplin added another goal to the already staggering score in the 78th minute as she received the rebound from Alex Topa’s shot just a few seconds before. Topa received credit for the assist. First-year Dana Robidoux and senior Jess Manchak, who are both goalkeepers for Etown, held down the defense, leading the Blue Jays to their sixth shutout of the season.
Fans were able to compete in a raffle and participate in a fan shootout where prizes were given out while all proceeds went to the Cancer Awareness Foundation. There was much help with donations and prize-winning gifts; as the major sponsors were Angelo’s Soccer Corner, John Smith Real Estate Group and Premier Screen Printing. With the help of these sponsors, fans were able to win prizes such as a replica Philadelphia Union Home Jersey (MLS) and four tickets to a Philadelphia Union home game with seats in Angelo’s Soccer Corner suite. Angelo’s also added pink select game balls for both contests. With a donation of any amount, one was automatically entered in the raffle.
This was a special game for the Blue Jays as the men’s head coach, Skip Roderick, fought cancer and won. Alvernia’s head coach, Casey Moore, who is an Etown alumnus, also helped Roderick bring this game into action as both were the main contributors to setting up this event. “Kicks for Cancer” was able to raise $700 in donations.