Nattali Molina, junior health education major and player for Wales, sprints after the ball before it falls out of bounds as Robert Maxey, junior civil engineering major and player for Switzerland, picks up the slack to reclaim the ball. Julie Gurrola | Banner
Throughout the entire school year there are intramural events that take place on campus. Students compete in their sport of choice, whether it be flag football, basketball or soccer, and the Lancer student body strives for bragging rights on campus.
Teams Switzerland and Wales competed April 14 for the coveted Lancer Cup on the Front Lawn.
Switzerland made it to the championship game this year by finishing the regular season with an 8-0 record and defeating England and Netherlands in the playoffs to make it to the Lancer Cup. Wales finished off their regular season with a 6-2 record, and defeated Spain and Nigeria to make their way to the championship game this year.
This year’s Lancer Cup provided plenty of excitement and action as these two teams battled it out underneath the bright lights on the field. Students and staff filled the bleachers in anticipation to cheer on their fellow classmates and students.
The game provided some much-needed entertainment leading into finals week, and the activities at halftime also gave another reason to enjoy the night.
As halftime came with a score of 0-0, the Office of Community Life planned to give them something to cheer for as they enlisted the help of teams Sweden and U.S.A. to play bubble soccer, where each team had to play while wearing inflatable bubbles.
Before too long, halftime was over and Switzerland and Wales took the field for the last 15 minutes of the Lancer Cup.
While the first half of the game revolved around the two teams getting comfortable with one another, the second half was a different story as the teams began playing more competitively, each determined to make the game come to a conclusion in their favor.
After several close shots from both teams, Wales player Junior Rios, senior kinesiology major, scored the first and only goal of the game. Switzerland responded with several attempted shots, but Wales’ goalkeeping proved to be too strong.
Rios said his adrenaline level was high after he scored. By scoring the winning goal, Rios was voted most valuable player of the game, and said it was the best way for him to leave CBU in a couple of weeks.
Wales team captain Jesus Farias, junior civil engineering major, contributed to the team’s success and their passion for soccer, as well as their interaction with each other as teammates.
“Switzerland has great knowledge of soccer,” Farias said “They played really well with the ball. It’s a great team to play against.”
Switzerland put their best foot forward from the first second of the game and fought hard the entire time. Team captain Robbie Maxey, junior civil engineering major, said their team success comes from their team-first mentality.
“We had a perfect season, and it was nice to get to play in front of these people,” Maxey said.
