By A.J. Atkinson
FPS Sports
August 31, 2009
 |
| Warrior Zane Pyles advances the ball against visiting Canton McKinley Saturday. |
The Carrollton Warriors boys’ soccer team is 1- 2 after their first week of regular season play.
The Warriors opened their first game of the season last Monday against the Beaver Local Beavers, falling 8-2. Beaver Local had a total of four penalty kicks taken, three of them resulting in goals. They would add four other goals before the match was over.
The Warriors lacked in both offense and defensive strength, but despite the score, junior goalie Conrad Burns had an impressive 18 keeper saves. The Warriors took a mere three shots, but Zane Pyles and Dylan McLean’s found the net.
On Wednesday, the Warriors traveled to Crestview to pick up their first win of the season, 6-1. Carrollton looked strong, traveling up the field with many give-and-goes. With their short passing game, senior midfielders Juan Gomez and Joel Baker created many scoring opportunities for their forwards.
McLean played sound as a defender, which is a new position for the sophomore. Burns had a relaxing game, saving all six of Crestview’s shots on target. Baker came in in the second half to protect the net and recorded one save.
The Warriors’ six goals came from Daniel Raper, Gomez, and McLean, who each scored two goals. Ben Atkinson, Joel Baker, Pyles, and Bobby Wiltfang all assisted.
The Warriors played their first home game Saturday against Division I Canton McKinley. Carrollton played a solid game, but the team was clearly outrun by the speed of the Bulldogs. The Warriors’ communication and short passes they executed so well against Crestview on Wednesday were not to be found. The Bulldogs took 12 shots with four of them finding the net, compared to the Warriors’ 11 total shots, all missing the net, making the final score 4-0.
The Warriors were scheduled to play their Northeastern Buckeye Conference opener Tuesday at Louisville against the 0-1-1 Leopards. |
