Sophomore forward Mahmoud Shimila had a brilliant match with five goals and three assists as the Chabot College men's soccer team walloped Merritt 8-1 on Tuesday, Sept. 12 in its season home opener.

An enthusiastic crowd watched the rousing triumph that marked the first win in three tries for new head coach Geoff Aguiar.

Aguiar says the team is buying into the 'Gladiator As One' mindset. "We survive and thrive together," he says.

Chabot is looking for another good turnout when the Gladiators' men's and women's teams host Redwoods in a doubleheader on Friday, with the men kicking off at 1 p.m. and the women at 11 a.m.

Merritt didn't stand much of a chance in Tuesday's match. Chabot needed just nine seconds to take a 1-0 lead on Shimila's first goal, assisted by Monir Gardizi.

"We came out ready to continue getting better," Aguiar said. "Had a strong start … Defensively we played sharp, forcing a lot of turnovers that helped create goal chances. Offensively we shared the ball and put our goalscorers in good positions to score."

Marcelo Perez added two goals in the second half in the blowout. Isaac Buenrostro scored in the first half to make it 3-0. Juan Gonzalez assisted Shimila's second goal, in the fifth minute.

Team captain Walter Avellaneda is playing a key role overall.

"He has been a huge part in helping to create the culture we are working towards," Aguiar said.

Every step of the way so far has been a learning experience for the Glads. They absorbed a 5-1 loss against a strong Santa Rosa Junior College in their season opener, and then showed marked improvement in a 3-0 road loss to Napa Valley. A few untimely mistakes helped decide the outcome.

"Their goalkeeper and posts made some big saves to keep us out of the goal," Aguiar said of the loss to Napa. "But we were happy with the progress we made."

Aguiar says the team is working hard to improve every day.