Union, MO – Under first-year head coach Kevin Nuss, the Indian Hills Men's Soccer team rallied late to earn a 2-2 draw against East Central College (MO) in the team's season-opener on Saturday. The Warriors trailed 2-0 before evening the match late to earn the tie.

"The transition of building a new program is never going to be easy," stated Nuss, "but I'm pleased with the effort and the fight that the guys showed to be able to come back from two goals down. It's a start and we move forward. I'm excited about the performance and the character everyone showed."

Both sides went scoreless through the opening frame, but it was East Central that struck first with a second half score in the 48^th minute. Just seven minutes later, the Falcons snuck a goal past starting keeper Matteo Scarduczzio (San Seconda Parmense, Italy/Fabio Bocchialini) for the two-goal advantage.

Faced with its first test of the season, the Warriors responded in the 60^th minute with a goal from Kento Tani (Tachigi, Japan/Nihon Sano) on an assist from Galder Gatzelu-Iturri (. As the Warriors attempted to capitalize on opportunities, Richard Moreno Nino found the back of the net in the 85^th minute on an assist from Mateo Chavarriaga (Cartagena, Colombia/Montessori)

Scarduzzio was able to limit East Central through the remainder of regulation as well as the two overtime sessions to earn his first decision of his Indian Hills career.

With just three weeks of preseason for the Warriors, Nuss commended the squad for an overall team effort. "I don't think it was just one guy today. As you could see in the match as we went on in those 90 minutes, we started coming together more and more and it was a true team effort in those attacking phases. Obviously there's guys that went 90 and played a big part for us, but the guys coming off the bench were fantastic and brought great energy and created those goals for us. As we become more comfortable as a team and more guys know what's expected of them, we build fitness and come together, I'm expecting even better performances."

The Warriors square off against Jefferson College (MO) tomorrow at 2:00 PM. The Vikings captured the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region 16 championship a season ago and advanced to the NJCAA Midwest District Championship.

Nuss noted the opportunities that lay ahead tomorrow after a quick turnaround following a double-overtime match. "A lot of guys played a lot of minutes today. We're looking for the guys that didn't have their role today to step up and be big for us tomorrow. Jefferson is a quality opponent that we expect a big challenge from. It was a good test today, but the mental toughness and the test going into tomorrow will be even bigger."

DRAW! The @nussyk1 era began with a 2-2 tie this afternoon in Union, Missouri as the @IHCCSoccerMen overcame a 2-0 second-half deficit to salvage a draw in the season opener against East Central College. Next up: A 2 p.m. battle with @Jeffco_Soccer tomorrow in Hillsboro, MO. pic.twitter.com/FZCAGNQqoQ

— IHCC Athletics (@IHCCAthletics) August 21, 2021