Coming off of his first year of playing as a Maple Leaf at Goshen College, Ethan Francois-Ravalier is following the plan he started when he was a young boy in grade school in England – to play international professional soccer. Francois-Ravalier, born in Leicester, England, played his first international soccer game for the island country of Grenada on June 1, losing to Puerto Rico 3-4 in penalties. Six days later, he played against Antigua to a similar result, losing 1-5. Both games were part of the Caribbean Cup, a soccer tournament for teams that are members of the Caribbean Football...

By Josh Stoltzfus • December 8, 2016 • Features

Calvin Mangunda, a senior, scored on a rebound from Ollie Smith, a freshman, en route to Goshen College’s second consecutive win, a 1-0 Crossroads League men’s soccer victory over Grace College Saturday evening on the road at 1st Source Bank Field. In the 26th minute, the continued offensive pressure from the Maple Leafs paid off as Smith saw his shot from the right side of the penalty area saved and the rebound popped up to the top of the six-yard box. Mangunda was the first player to get a touch, as he rocketed the ball into the net for the...

By Andrew Snyder • October 27, 2016 • Sports

Ginyce Haywood, a senior, tallied her sixth goal of the season late in the first half on Tuesday night. However, it was not enough to overturn 18th-ranked Taylor University on Wednesday night in Crossroads League women’s soccer action from the John Ingold Athletic Complex. The Trojans took the match 4-1. The Taylor combo of Shannon Jacobsen assisting a Megan Kammer header-goal would prove successful twice, first at the 14:42 mark, then again with 22:52 remaining in the first stanza. These goals would put the Trojans up 2-0. With 10:45 left in the first half Haywood would cut the Trojan lead...

By Andrew Snyder • October 13, 2016 • Sports

TJ White, a first-year, tallied two goals as the Goshen College men’s soccer team’s fourth overtime contest of the year ended 2-1 in the Maple Leafs’ favor over Huntington University on Saturday night at the John Ingold Athletic Complex. In the 25th minute, a shot from Ethan Francois-Ravalier, a sophomore, was tipped to the backside of the goal where White was positioned. Settling the ball back towards the middle of the field, White then slotted a shot under the keeper and into the far netting for the 1-0 lead, a score line would hold until half. Each team registered six...

By Andrew Snyder • October 6, 2016 • Sports

All the way from Trinidad and Tobago, Ari Benjamin, Tevin Gilkes, Jimmelle Ramikissoon and Darius Rawlins have come to play for the Goshen College men’s soccer team and contribute to the school’s community. The four Caribbean natives were all recruited by Khavoir Graham, the assistant men’s soccer coach. Benjamin, a junior transfer student from Lassen College in Susanville, California, was contacted by Graham with the appealing opportunity to play for a new team. Meanwhile, Gilkes, a first-year at the time, helped Graham in recruiting Rawlins, a sophomore transfer from the University of the West Indies, and Ramikissoon, a first-year. The...

By Abby King • September 29, 2016 • Features

The Goshen College men’s soccer team traveled to Baldwin City, Kansas last weekend for a pair of games as part of the Baker Tournament. The Maple Leafs lost to 10th ranked Baker University 3-0 Friday afternoon, then turned around and beat Graceland University 3-0 on Saturday. On Friday, Baker defended their home turf right from the start, tallying twice in the 8th minute. Steeve Pouna connected with a long throw in and headed the ball off the post and across the goalmouth, where teammate Blake Levine finished home the loose ball for the 1-0 lead. On the ensuing kickoff Baker...

By Andrew Snyder • September 15, 2016 • Sports

The Goshen College men’s soccer team hosted the Goshen College Classic last weekend at the John Ingold Athletic Complex, battling to a 1-1 draw against William Penn University on Friday night followed by a 0-0 stalemate versus Aquinas College on Saturday evening. The first half of Friday’s game saw plenty of action on both ends of the field, but no goals to show for it. Each team recorded six shots and earned four corner kicks. Goshen headed into the halftime break with six fouls and two saves by Goshen goalkeeper Johan Escalente. William Penn had only four fouls and one...

By Andrew Snyder • September 8, 2016 • Sports

Indiana Player of the Year, First Team All State, First Team All District, National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Athlete of the Week and First Team All-Crossroads League—these titles all belong to Isaac Huerta, a Goshen College soccer player. Huerta became a local soccer sensation almost overnight, emerging as the best player in the state after less than five years of playing the sport. Despite his recognition for the sport of soccer, Huerta actually spent most of his life as a basketball player in Mexico. He was so passionate about basketball, in fact, that he would travel two hours by car...

By Karina Flores • February 11, 2016 • Features

The start of a new semester can mean students transferring to a different college for any number of reasons. For Oliver Smith, transferring to Goshen meant the opportunity to play soccer for a new team while furthering his education. Smith is a first year student from Thirsk, in the northern part of England. Moving to a new country may seem like a big leap, but he is not the first to move to Goshen for a sports team. There are two other students on the team from England, as well as three other students who are from Trinidad and Tobago,...

By Elsa Lantz • January 21, 2016 • Features

On Saturday, October 31, the men’s soccer team traveled to Marion to take on Indiana Wesleyan in the first round of the Crossroad’s League tournament. Though the Leafs were the underdogs on paper (ranked 8th in the conference to IWU’s 1st), Aaron Patrick, head coach, was optimistic entering play. “Last year we went to IWU and I pretty much knew it would take a miracle to get a win, they were simply just better than us all over the pitch. This year I left feeling like we were very evenly matched and just a little bit of luck on their...

By Michael Walker • November 5, 2015 • Sports

For the third time in as many games, Isaac Huerta lifted the Goshen men’s soccer team to a win over a conference opponent. After scoring the game-winner against Spring Arbor last Wednesday and Taylor on Saturday, Huerta again netted the game winner, this time against Mount Vernon on Wednesday night. Huerta, a first-year, continued his red-hot pace by scoring his 4th goal in three games. Dean Nafziger, senior goalkeeper, recorded his second straight shutout in the victory. The victory raises Goshen’s record to 4-8 (3-1 in conference) for the season. The Maple Leafs have won three straight conference games and...

By Seth Wesman • October 8, 2015 • Sports

It is not hard to see him on campus—he is 6’5” and he always has a smile on his face. Tevin Gilkes is a newcomer on the Goshen College men’s soccer team and one of the voices for the songs before games. Gilkes was born in Arouca, Trinidad and Tobago, on January 6, 1993. Ever since he was little, he has played soccer. Gilkes’ passion for soccer comes from his family, where the sport is a big tradition. “My uncles and dad played ‘football’ a lot,” he said. For Goshen, Gilkes will play as a center back, but at the...

By Luis Pérez Lerchundi • September 10, 2015 • Sports

The beginning of a new school year brings many changes—one of those changes for Goshen College is the creation of stadium seating at the GC soccer complex. According to GC athletic director Josh Gleason, the goal is to generate interest that could help to make some improvements and upgrades and be able to use the money brought in for those purposes. Gleason gave some insight into what brought about the update to the soccer complex. “In a very general sense, we’re looking at ways to improve all our facilities from playing surface to the aesthetics and making them visually appealing....

By Seth Wesman • September 10, 2015 • Sports

As Goshen’s men’s soccer team suited up at Taylor University on Nov. 8 for the semifinal conference game, the atmosphere certainly didn’t feel like an away game. “Our fans made it feel like we were playing at home—we were louder and more enthusiastic,” Caleb Longenecker, a senior starter, said. “It definitely made it more exciting, and we wanted to make it a great game for all the people that showed up and believed in us.” The amount of support from students was due in large part to the Residence Life team for organizing charter bus transportation for students. Katie Dwyer-Zeman,...

By Hayley Mann • November 19, 2014 • Features

The Goshen College men’s soccer season ended on Saturday night in a 3-0 loss to Indiana Wesleyan University during the championship match of the 2014 Crossroads League men’s soccer tournament. IWU started the game with a quick goal when Keaton Albert, a junior, connected with the goal less than two minutes into the game. This goal was held up as the game-winner and had a lasting influence on the rest of the game. Andres Garcia, a senior captain, talked about how this goal affected the team, “Coming into the game everyone was very focused and ready to go. The early...

By Luis Pérez Lerchundi • November 19, 2014 • Sports