{"id":612155,"date":"2026-04-18T09:58:11","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T09:58:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/612155\/"},"modified":"2026-04-18T09:58:11","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T09:58:11","slug":"spartans-take-two-from-raiders-on-soccer-field","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/612155\/","title":{"rendered":"Spartans take two from Raiders on soccer field"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\"Peter<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tSHAPE goalkeeper Peter Sudimak punches away a corner ahead of Kaiserslautern winger Ryan Suthers, center left, and center back Seth Patterson during an April 17, 2026, match at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner\/Stars and Stripes)
\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany \u2013 The SHAPE boys and girls soccer teams breathed sighs of relief during their wins over Kaiserslautern on Friday evening. <\/p>\n

Granted, they were for extremely different reasons. <\/p>\n

During the girls\u2019 6-2 victory at Kaiserslautern High School, the Spartans gave up a goal to Raider Sophie Pezel just seconds after Iveta Stefancinova gave the visitors the lead. <\/p>\n

Coach Chad Lucy said allowing the equalizer had a calming effect in the third minute of the match. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe can\u2019t seem to play a match without giving up a goal,\u201d he said. \u201cThe girls are really funny about it. They\u2019re like, \u2018Oh, thank God that goal\u2019s out of the way.\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n

On the boys side, the second goal by captain Marten Muurisepp in the 55th minute doubled the Spartans\u2019 advantage and helped them pull away for a 4-0 win. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was such a big relief because we were looking for that second goal for quite a long time,\u201d Muurisepp said. \u201cWhen we finally got it, all of us were so excited.\u201d <\/p>\n

\t\t\"Antonio<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tSHAPE winger Antonio Evangelista redirects the ball toward net during an April 17, 2026, match against Kaiserslautern at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner\/Stars and Stripes)
\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Jesus<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tSHAPE winger Jesus Lukas and Kaiserslautern fullback Ethan Bellus go after a ball during an April 17, 2026, match at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner\/Stars and Stripes)
\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Seth<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tKaiserslautern center back Seth Patterson crosses the ball during an April 17, 2026, match against SHAPE at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner\/Stars and Stripes)
\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Boys<\/p>\n

SHAPE (3-0-1, 3-0) struggled to get the ball past Kaiserslautern goalkeeper Fabi Florez-Diaz (11 saves) for 46 minutes Friday, after senior winger Jesus Lukas put the Spartans ahead on a through ball from Chase Lattemore in the ninth minute. <\/p>\n

Then, in the 55th minute, SHAPE junior Antonio Evangelista crossed the ball to Muurisepp, who ripped a shot from distance. <\/p>\n

\u201cI was like, \u2018Patience \u2013 once that second one comes, it\u2019s going to fall and you guys are going to get it,\u2019\u201d SHAPE coach Erika Aquino said. \u201cAs soon as we got that second one \u2026 everybody could breathe and I think they felt a little bit more at ease.\u201d <\/p>\n

In a matchup of two undefeated squads, the Spartans dominated the first half in terms of possession and chances. They produced seven shots on target and had five corners to put the Raiders under pressure. <\/p>\n

In the second half, Kaiserslautern began to assert itself offensively and almost tied the match in the 54th minute when SHAPE fullback George Vorris cleared a deflected corner off the goal line.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Once the Spartans got the second goal, the field tilted in their favor. A pair of goals from Lattemore and Wilson Stewart in the 72nd and 74th minutes sealed the victory. <\/p>\n

SHAPE gained the upper hand in the middle of the field. The visitors\u2019 trident of Owen Aquino, Lattemore and Muurisepp collected balls and sent through passes to teammates for the team\u2019s best goal-scoring opportunities. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not a secret: We play our way through the midfield,\u201d Erika Aquino said. \u201cThey have such good vision, and they know each other so well to be able to give those through balls. <\/p>\n

\u201cOur midfield is definitely our strength.\u201d <\/p>\n

While the Raiders didn\u2019t get on the scoresheet, coach Scott Manson said they showed they can hang with one of the best teams in Division I. <\/p>\n

\u201cI believe wholeheartedly in this team; I think they have it,\u201d he said. \u201cToday\u2019s a good challenge. We\u2019ll take a lot of lessons learned from this.\u201d <\/p>\n

\t\t\"Iveta<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tSHAPE senior midfielder Iveta Stefancinova shoots as Kaiserslautern’s Olivia Ferdinandsen, center, and Layla Fleishman defend during an April 17, 2026, match at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner\/Stars and Stripes)
\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Victoria<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tSHAPE sophomore Victoria Del Pozo tries to shoot through Kaiserslautern defenders Isabella Schmidt, center, and Skylar Johnson, right, during an April 17, 2026, match at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner\/Stars and Stripes)
\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\t\t\"Kaelin<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\tKaiserslautern junior Kaelin Cahill blocks a cross into the box during an April 17, 2026, match against SHAPE at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner\/Stars and Stripes)
\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

Girls<\/p>\n

Throughout Friday\u2019s match, the Kaiserslautern players focused primarily on Stefancinova. <\/p>\n

The senior midfielder proved why the Raiders (0-3, 0-2) kept \u201ceyes on 11,\u201d referring to her number. Stefancinova recorded a hat-trick within the first 32 minutes and added a pair of assists. <\/p>\n

\u201cIveta is a maestro,\u201d Lucy said. \u201cShe is the kind of player that is tactically and technically skilled. She makes the players around her better.\u201d <\/p>\n

Stefancinova was a menace throughout, dribbling through the Kaiserslautern defense for all three goals, starting in the second minute. In the sixth minute, she carried the ball 20 yards before launching a shot past Kaiserslautern goalkeeper Sofiana Pope. <\/p>\n

Her goal in the 32nd minute topped them all. The SHAPE captain juked past two defenders before slotting the ball inside the right post to give the Spartans (3-1, 2-1) a 4-1 lead. <\/p>\n

\u201cI was feeling really good about it, proud of myself,\u201d Stefancinova said of the third goal. \u201cThe ball was just flowing around the defenders, so I\u2019m glad it went in.\u201d <\/p>\n

Still, what Lucy said separates Stefancinova is her unselfish nature. <\/p>\n

Her aggressive passing put her teammates into good positions to score, which sophomore defender Victoria Del Pozo and freshman Wren Stewart did in the eighth and 72nd minutes. <\/p>\n

The only SHAPE goal in which Stefancinova didn\u2019t have a hand was on fellow captain Olivia Penry\u2019s in the 64th minute. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf I\u2019m scoring lots of goals, I want to keep the chance for another girl,\u201d Stefancinova said. \u201cI\u2019m really glad when they score.\u201d <\/p>\n

Kaiserslautern coach Stephanie Bigbey said she\u2019s not concerned about the results right now. The roster doesn\u2019t have a single senior and had 10 underclassmen on Friday. <\/p>\n

The Raiders showed sparks with a pair of goals, starting when Pezel chipped a shot over SHAPE goalkeeper Aimee Fitzgerald. Then, in the 67th minute, freshman Sara Sateri launched a goal from outside the 18-yard box that found the back of the net. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re holding their own against all the teams,\u201d Bigbey said. \u201cThey should watch out for us this time next year.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SHAPE goalkeeper Peter Sudimak punches away a corner ahead of Kaiserslautern winger Ryan Suthers, center left, and center…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":612156,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[440],"tags":[49,48,230557,230558,230559,230560,561,82],"class_list":{"0":"post-612155","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-soccer","8":"tag-ca","9":"tag-canada","10":"tag-dodea-europe-soccer","11":"tag-high-school-soccer-in-europe","12":"tag-kaiserslautern-raiders","13":"tag-shape-spartans","14":"tag-soccer","15":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612155","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=612155"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612155\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/612156"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=612155"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=612155"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=612155"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}