OKLAHOMA CITY – After battling through a scoreless draw in the first half, Lucas Catosso broke a s tie with a 60^th-minute penalty kick goal and No. 12 MACU added a pair of insurance goals to beat Wayland Baptist 3-0 in its Sooner Athletic Conference opener at the Dill Soccer Field on Saturday afternoon. The Evangels also celebrated its annual Alumni Day as MACU held a ceremony prior to the start of the contest.
 
SCORING SUMMARY

• 2nd Half – MACU – 59:29 – Goal: Lucas Catosso (2) – MACU 1, WBU 0
• 2nd Half – MACU – 65:21 – Goal: Uviwe Qasha (2); Assists: Jimmy Cabrera, Mario Garcia – MACU 2, WBU 0
• 2nd Half – MACU – 77:50 – Goal: Federico Palacios (3); Assists: Pietro Musso, Tony Ngombi –MACU 3, WBU 0

MATCH SUMMARY

• First Half
  • Solid defense was the theme of the first 45 minutes, with the teams combining for just five shots, including two shots on-goal. Neither Mid-America Christian (6-1-2, 1-0 SAC) who took three shots, nor Wayland Baptist (5-4, 0-1 SAC) was able to finish in front of the net.
  • MACU's best chance at scoring the go-ahead goal in the opening half came in the 16^th minute when Tony Ngombi lofted a right-side cross over to Federico Palacios breaking toward the left post. His sliding shot got by the keeper, but a Pioneers defender was able to back up the save and clear it to keep MACU off the board.
  • Wayland Baptist had a golden opportunity to take the lead in the 27^th minute when the Pioneers intercepted a cross in MACU's attacking third before sending a relay onto the run of Jamol Williams, who was locked into a one-on-one breakaway with Emanuele Grumo. After making a cutback dribble at the top of the 18-yard box, the Pioneers top striker hooked a low liner toward the right post that MACU goalkeeper Claudio Fuentealba made an incredible diving save to force the shot out the right side.
• Second Half
  • MACU picked up the pace to begin the second half and was clearly the aggressor with several shots just missing their mark.
  • The Evangels finally found the back of the net in the 61st minute, following a yellow card by the Pioneers' Oliver Brown, who took down Qasha inside the 18-foot box. Catosso directed the penalty kick past goal keeper Alex Neri, who dove to the wrong side to make it 1-0.
  • Catosso's kick ended up being the game-winner, but Mid-America Christian added a pair of insurance goals in the 66^th and 78^th minutes.
  • The Evangels' second goal started with a through ball controlled by Mario Garcia, who found Jimmy Cabrera in front of the goal. But instead of taking the shot, Cabrera unselfishly passed to Qasha on the left side and the graduate student from South Africa punched in the open shot from seven-yards out.
  • MACU's third goal was the result of a nicely played give-and-go between Ngombi and Pietro Musso down the right side, who found Palacios on the crossing pass in front of a helpless Neri. Palacios tapped in the wide-open five-yarder for his third goal of the season.

MATCH NOTES

• In the stiff defensive battle, Mid-America Christian held a slim 9-4 shot differential over Wayland Baptist with just a 4-1 edge in shots on-goal. However, MACU was incredibly efficient with their on-target chances by converting on three of the four attempts.
• Overall, six different Evangels were involved in MACU's three scoring plays with Lucas Catosso, Uviwe Qasha and Federico Palacios scoring the goals while Jimmy Cabrera, Pietro Musso and Tony Ngombi tallying assists.
• Mid-America Christian has won nine straight against Wayland Baptist, improving to 12-8 against the Pioneers in a series that started in 2009. The Evangels have also won their last four SAC openers.
• Saturday's 3-0 victory marked the first time this season that a MACU game was not decided by one goal or less.

COACH AARON HOXIE'S ANALYSIS

• "That was a completely different team than what we experienced over the last few months. The smiles and joy were all over the boys faces and their desire to work for each other was incredible to see. I was very happy that the players followed the game plan to a 'T', and we were rewarded with some excellent team goals."
• "Clean sheets are always fun and when we had a bad moment in the first half, our goalkeeper made the save necessary to keep us in it. From there, it was about limiting space, double the ball and moving them around. The speed that we played in was excellent and contributed to wearing them out."
• "Comprehensive start to the SAC season. We've got to recover because we have a tough match against a solid USAO team on Tuesday. They are going to be dogs and we've got to prep in the right way for them."

UP NEXT

• Mid-America Christian will head to Chickasha, Oklahoma on Tuesday as the Evangels brace for a big road match against Science & Arts. Kickoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. at McLaughlin Field.