Christopher Akwaja, a sophomore from Orlu, Nigeria (Bakersfield HS), notched his first two collegiate goals last week to earn Wildcat of the Week honors. Akwaja, a civil engineering major, netted his first collegiate goal against Cal State Stanislaus last Wednesday and then headed home the game-winning tally against Cal State East Bay Friday.
Against Cal State Stanislaus, Akwaja worked with a pair of teammates to put the match away with the Wildcats’ second goal. He and true freshman Josh Borja worked together to work the ball up the field before Akwaja and Josh Johnson connected with some nifty passing to put the Warriors in major danger. A quick give-and-go left Akwaja with only Waite to beat, and he did so smoothly with a controlled low liner toward the near post for his first goal of the season.
On Saturday against Cal State East Bay, Akwaja broke a scoreless tie with his second goal in three days. Nick Tedrow set the play in motion with a nice defensive play and quick transition into the offense. He cleared the ball diagonally to the speedy Dawkins, who made some nifty moves to get to the corner of the box before sending a one-hop cross that Akwaja headed home at the far post.