RMS Soccer Honors 8th Graders After 2-0 Win Over Ocoee Middle

Evensville, TN, 4/23/24 -- Tuesday, April 23rd, was a full night of soccer in Rhea County with both RMS boys and RCHS men’s teams competing in back-to-back games.  RMS Eagles finished number 1 in their district for the season, making history as the first RMS boy’s soccer team to do so, which guaranteed home field advantage for their playoff game vs. the Ocoee Colts, who placed 4th in the district.  The Colts came to Bill Horton Field looking for revenge off of their two season losses to the Eagles, but the Eagles showed up to play and put an end to the Colts’ plans.  The first half saw good ball control and defensive work by Elijah Norman, Simeon Toliver, and Sawyer Campbell to keep our goalie, Ethan Nelson, free of pressure for most of the game.  The midfield unit of Gio Pacheco, Emiliano “Emi” Sanchez, Jeremy Perez, Anderson Cathey, and Sam Walton, with help given by the bench from Gavin McCosh and Sawyer Prudhomme, moved the ball effortlessly throughout the field, with good give-and-go’s, accurate passing, and overlap runs that enabled our forward unit of Zane Shaffer and Ian Arnold to see a lot of action up top.  Within the first ten minutes of the game, Cathey delivered a corner kick that sailed to the far end of the goal where Arnold was able to run in and firmly place into the corner of the net, Eagles up 1-0.  The Colts kept trying to come back and even up the score, but the defensive line kept the ball back up into our midfield to keep distributing for runs by the Eagles.  The last ten minutes of the first half saw another beautiful cross ball by Pacheco into the 18 box, where McCosh made a run in and connected with the ball to land it in the far corner of the net again, Eagles up 2-0 at halftime. The second half saw lots of the same offensive pressure and action by the Eagles, with multiple corner kicks as well, but the Colts held on and kept them scoreless, so the final score of victory in the first round of playoffs was 2-0.  Coach Carson Ruehling was excited about the win and had this to say, “We knew it would be a tough game. Ocoee played us twice already with close results in the season.  However, our boys came out calm, cool, and collected.  We always tell our boys that we have enough talent to outwork the other team, so if they go do it, we will get a result.  Each person that stepped out on the field for us worked hard, and it was a great night for the win and to celebrate our 8th graders.”  Following the game, the Eagles took time to honor the fifteen 8th graders on their team with their family, friends, and coaches:

Securing the win for their first playoff game means the Eagles will again have home field advantage for the championship game vs. Cleveland, who finished 2nd in the district, and who the Eagles had a draw of 1-1 against in the regular season.  The game will be on Friday, April 26th, at 5pm, followed by a district game by RCHS Men’s Soccer Team vs. McMinn at 7pm. Senior night recognition will follow the RCHS Eagles’ game

Audrey Norman

8th Grade Soccer Players: #1-Ethan Nelson  #2- Avery Scoggins  #7- Ian Arnold  #10-Devi Lopez 

#11- Gio Pacheco  #13- Adrian Juan  #17-Simeon Toliver   #19- Emiliano Sanchez  #20-Elijah Norman 

#21- Israel Alberto  #22- Exar Vasquez Diaz  ##24- Jeremy Perez  #27- Anderson Cathey 

#29-Sawyer Campbell  #35-Sam Rasnake