SALEM, Va. - The Roanoke College men's soccer team hosted and participated in the 6th annual Goal-a-Thon in Kerr Stadium to benefit Micah's Backpack.
On Friday, March 23th, the Roanoke College Men's Soccer team successfully completed its Goal-a-Thon mission to score 100 goals. During the Goal-a-Thon, the men's soccer team was divided into five teams of five players, while goalkeepers remained with their team after each win, and rotated after each loss. Two games of 5v5 were played simultaneously lasting five minutes each.
A new record time of completion was met in this year's Goal-a-Thon with the participants scoring 100 goals in under an hour and a half. The first came off the foot of sophomore Atticus Cooke with the 100th being scored by freshman Philani Mlotshwa.
Sophomore Marc Hoppler earned the coveted "golden boot" for the most goals with ten. Alumni goalkeeper Ryne Bower won the "golden gloves" award for allowing the fewest goals.
After the 100th goal was scored, teams were seeded and placed into brackets based on most games won throughout the Goal-a-Thon. From there, through a tournament format, the team consisting of seniors Marshall Hodge, Brandon Bauer, Cole Thornton, Sam Rauf, and Jonty Chimbera won the final.
Donations were still coming in during the Goal-a-Thon, and have already amassed $3000 for Micah's Backpack and the Roanoke College Men's Soccer program. Micah's Backpack addresses children's hunger issues by partnering with local schools to provide direct assistance to students and families who qualify for the free lunch program. Each week during the school year, the identified students receive a backpack filled with enough food for the weekend. The backpacks include two dinners, two lunches, and two breakfasts. Weekly, nearly 70 volunteers from various academic, civic, and religious groups work together to build community while packing the backpacks for the partner schools to distribute to students.
To find out more about Micah's Backpack go to micahsbackpack.org.
