Iowa Lakes opened their National Championship Tournament campaign on Sunday in Tucson, AZ. The Lakers faced Rock Valley in their first match of pool play, winning 7-0. It was a dominant display by The Lakers, showing why they are considered one of the top teams in the nation.

The scoring started in the 11th minute, with Eugenio Perez taking three consecutive shots in the same run of play, with the final one finding the back of the net. The next goal came in the 28th minute from a fantastic delivery by goalkeeper Yuta Hirano, finding Emilion Cazares on the long ball over the top, which he buried past the Rock Valley goalkeeper on a very composed half-valley. Flynn Faulkner was then taken down in the box in the 34th minute, and Cazares stepped up to the spot to convert the penalty and put The Lakers up 3-0. Flynn Faulkner then got on the scoresheet himself with a neatly tucked-away finish from outside the box.

The Lakers were not finished with business coming out into the second half. Lucas Catosso scored just at the start of the period, putting The Lakers up 5-0. The Lakers then made several substitutions to see the game out. William Gonzalez came on as left-back and got on the scoresheet from the set-up by Lander Gonzalez in the 68th minute. Francis Motsi then capped off the 7-0 victory in the 77th minute with a phenomenal strike from outside the box.

Iowa Lakes faces the tournament host Pima Community College on Tuesday at 6:30pm CST in their second pool play match. If The Lakers come out victorious, they will automatically qualify for the semi-final round of The National Championship.