MINNEAPOLIS and COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – The Gustavus men’s soccer team competed in a scrimmage at Augsburg on Friday and an 8-vs.-8 tournament at Saint John’s on Saturday in preparation for its 2021 spring season.
“Overall we are really happy with the weekend,” Head Coach Tudor Flintham said. “Our training week was as good as it could have been and guys are really focused but loose. Obviously we aren’t perfect right now after such a long layoff, and integrating some new players who will play big roles this fall. Everyone knows the young team from last year but we have 5-6 new faces who we like a lot.”
On Friday at Augsburg, the Gusties scrimmaged Augsburg with a 3-1 decision in favor of Gustavus. Matt Gibbons (Sr., Minneapolis) scored twice and Cole Schwartz (Sr., Jakarta, Indonesia) scored the third goal. Both of Gibbons’ goals were unassisted – the first was a left-footed volley from left of the box, and the second on a direct free kick from 25 yards out. Schwartz’ goal came from an entrance pass from Otis Anderson (So., Minneapolis) to put Jakob Foss (Fy., Greencastle, Ind) one-on-one with the keeper. Foss then passed it sideways to Schwartz who put home the goal. Augsburg’s goal came after the third Gustie goal on a counter attack. All four goals in the game were scored in the first half. The Gusties hit the crossbar twice in the second half and missed a couple breakaways.
“Augsburg was a great game,” Flintham said. “Both teams probably trying some things and experimenting. But they play some great stuff and there were moments where both teams looked special. I do feel we were very wasteful and really should have scored a few more goals. But we are creating chances and it’s a completely different team from 2019 so it’s going to take some time.”
The 8-on-8 tournament at Saint John’s on Saturday offered the Gusties another opportunity to sharpen their skills.
“Honestly it was just awesome to see everyone really compete,” Flintham said. “The entire squad played a ton and some really good stuff. In an 8v8 tournament winning wasn’t really the stated goal, but obviously that’s fun and breeds confidence in everyone when you come home without losing a game. So many guys played well, so I don’t want to really highlight individuals, but Cole Schwartz scored eight goals in 90 minutes so probably deserves a pat on the back. It’ll be different when we play them again in a few weeks but it was a really fun day.”
Gustavus opens it spring season next Sunday at home against St. Olaf.