The Barton Community College men’s soccer team came out on top of a physical game against Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference Eastern Division foe Coffeyville on Thursday afternoon.
The Cougars, who beat the Ravens 4-1, advance to 5-1 on the season, 1-0 in the KJCCC West Division.
Barton head coach Oliver Twelvetrees said that even though his team struggled in the first half, only scoring one goal and giving up five shots on goal to Coffeyville, he said he thought that his team showed character by playing strong in the final 45 minutes.
“We played well in periods of the game,” Oliver Twelvetrees said. “It wasn’t a typical performance, but we showed flashes of what we can do. I thought Daniel (Macleod) played well and was rewarded with a goal at the end.
“We fought, battled and showed our character. When they equalized, we showed our character and won the ball in the second half. We showed our character to pull away and to put some passes together and put some decent combinations together.”
Ahmad Bah got Barton started with 26 minutes, 31 seconds remaining in the first half. Bah was able to beat the Coffeyville goalkeeper to be the only player on either team with a goal.
Barton took a 1-0 lead into the half.
That lead dwindled quickly after a tackle by Barton sophomore Nestor Morales inside the penalty box drew a foul call.
Ravens midfielder Noki Le took the resulting penalty kick and beat Barton goalkeeper Nick Alexander to tie the game at 1-1.
Andre Souza gave the Cougars the lead against six minutes later when a free kick sent into the box was batted away by the Ravens goalie. Souza recovered the loose ball outside of the penalty box and buried the ball into the net over the goalkeeper.
Morales redeemed himself with a goal with 11:29 remaining. He raced past the defense for a one-on-one with the goalkeeper, and grounded a low shot that rolled in to put the Cougars up 3-1.
Macleod scored the final goal for the Cougars with 2:52 remaining.
It was a physical battle for both teams, with multiple yellow cards and a red card handed out. Cougars defender Diogo Quirino was injured on a play in front of the Coffeyville goal and had to be sent to a hospital in Hays for treatment.
The Cougars host Neosho County on Wednesday at 4 p.m.
 
• Cougars boast second straight conference play of the week
Barton Community College men’s soccer player Lippi Souza has been named Week 2’s KJCCC Verizon Wireless Player of the Week. 
Souza, a sophomore from Shawnee, scored a phenomenal 30-yard kick last week against Hesston College, and the game-winning goal Sunday against No. 9 San Jacinto College. For the week, Souza scored two goals on five shots on goal.
“I honestly didn’t think it was going to happen,” said Lippi Souza, who is the second Barton player to be named as player of the week. “I was just playing my part. I think this is more of a statement as a team, rather than myself. They put me in a position to score and I just capitalized.”