Capping off their first season within the Collegiate Conference of the South, the Covenant College men's soccer team took on the LaGrange Panthers in the final match of the Collegiate Conference of the South Men's Soccer Championships.
 
Entering the tournament as the No. 2 seed, the Scots faced a difficult stretch in order to reach a chance to lift the championship trophy. Thanks to consistent play and previous post-season experience, Covenant entered the the CCS Tournament finals coming off of two close wins and with the No. 1 seed yet to face.
 
With the stage set and both teams ready to face off, the championship commenced and featured several early offensive opportunities for both teams. Following a combined five total shots within the first 20 minutes of play, Covenant secured momentum early after a goal by Junior Forward Kade Theunissen in the 22nd minute, assisted on the play by Junior Midfielder Knox Gibson. 
 
The rest of the first half would remain scoreless, despite a multitude of scoring opportunities for both teams, leaving the Scots up 1-0 heading into the final 45 minutes of play. 
 
Similar to the first 45 minutes of the contest, the second half, too, remained scoreless. It was not until a 68th-minute goal from LaGrange's Lucas Duke, assisted by Blake Webb, that the scoring dry-spell was broken. Duke's goal evened the score 1-1 entering into the last 20 minutes of regulation. Despite this temporary momentum shift, Covenant was able to capitalize off of the Panther's consistent penalty trouble, totaling three yellow cards and one red card. 
 
Looking as though the final match-up between the Scots and the Panthers may extend into overtime in order to settle the final score, the silence was broken after a Covenant Scots' goal.
 
Senior Midfielder Thomas Drake nixed the possibility of overtime with his game-deciding goal in the 85th minute of the game. Drake's first goal for this 2022 season could not have come at a better time, as it planted Covenant in the lead at 2-1 over the No. 1 Panthers. Kade Theunissen found Drake at just the right moment, allowing for little time for LaGrange to respond. It was Thomas Drake's Championship-winning goal that sealed the deal for the Covenant Scots in order to take the first ever Collegiate Conference of the South Men's Soccer Tournament Title. 
 
What a season it was for Covenant Men's Soccer. The Scots' only conference loss in regular season was attributed to LaGrange, but in a turn of events, it was the Scots that took down the Panthers in the finals in order to take home the CCS Tournament trophy.
 
Following the championship match, three were named to the All-Championship Team. The key players of the tournament were honored in a ceremony directly after the Scots became the CCS Men's Soccer Champions. Those who were selected for All-Championship were Aaron Riggs, Thomas Drake, and Jay Patterson. Patterson was then further recognized as the Most-Outstanding Athlete of the tournament.

Up next for the Scots is still yet to be determined, but the Scots hope for further continuation of post-season play. Selections will be made and released early next week.
 
CONNECT WITH THE SCOTS
Be sure to follow the Scots all season long on athletics.covenant.edu and on social media at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for up-to-date scores, news and other information.