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GREENCASTLE BOYS' SOCCER SECTIONAL: Tiger Cubs start title defense with romp over Vikings
The tag of sectional favorites has been hanging from Greencastle’s neck for a few seasons now and as Monday showed, it is for good reason.
West Vigo, the only other team with a sectional title in recent years, squared off with the hosts of IHSAA Boys’ Soccer Class 2A Sectional No. 28 with the Tiger Cubs scoring four times in the first half to kickstart their title defense in a 7-1 win over the Vikings.
“Our boys underestimated (West Vigo) out of the gates,” Greencastle head coach JD Sims said about the start of the match. “West Vigo came in with a plan to work super hard off the ball and the kids weren’t ready for that.
“That did work to our advantage as we like to be a passing team and if you’re going to work that hard off the ball, you’re also going to run yourself to death. After we settled, the control shifted to us.
“The second half was a bit of a reverse as we were sloppy in the beginning and cleaned it up as the half went on,” Sims added. “We started playing some soccer at the end.”
West Vigo kept Greencastle at bay for the first 10 minutes before an Anthony Peters cross from the right was clipped just over the crossbar by Mythius Slagle.
The hosts ramped up the pressure from there and a pair of corners led to the opening goal.
The first corner was missed by Viking goalkeeper Grayson Hoopingarner and had to be cleared behind for another.
Milyn Tucker sent the second corner in and again Hoopingarner could only get a hand to it and the half-cleared ball found its way to Cyrus Gurnon, who sent the ball back in with interest for a 1-0 lead.
The Vikings nearly had an instant reply as Draik Mason’s free kick was just wide of Conor Petrie’s goal but it was the hosts who doubled the lead 14 minutes into the half.
A cross from the right was allowed to go all the way across the field and an attempted clearance was instead taken away by Travis Overshiner, who had time to take aim and slam past Hoopingarner for a 2-0 advantage.
The game entered a bit of a lull with a few half chances for the hosts until Tucker saw a shot from distance cleared off the line 13 minutes from halftime.
Gurnon was first to the ball and the sophomore slotted home his second of the match for a 3-0 lead.
Thirty seconds later it was 4-0 as Fischer Barcus sent a ball through the heart of the West Vigo defense, one Sam Hanlon was able to reach ahead of the defense, sliding a shot past the onrushing Hoopingarner.
The rest of the half petered out as Greencastle was content with its lead heading into the break.
West Vigo sparked the match back to life four minutes into the second half as the Tiger Cub defense was asleep at the wheel, allowing Owen Scott to break free and slot past Petrie to make it 4-1.
The hosts looked for a reply but struggled to force Hoopingarner into action for the following 10 minutes of play.
Slagle would break the resistance after a Fischer through ball was chased after by Overshiner and Viking defender Johan Trejo Gonzalez, the latter reaching the ball first but whose tackle saw the ball fall to Slagle, who tapped past Hoopingarner.
Greencastle added a sixth five minutes later when Barcus shifted the ball from the middle to Hanlon on the right and his cross evaded the West Vigo defense with Overshiner on hand for his second tally of the night.
Play began to slow with the match all but decided with just enough time for one more goal as a Tucker corner in the final seconds was headed home by Barcus to cement the win and advancement to Wednesday’s semifinal round against Owen Valley.
“The opening to this game was a wakeup call,” Sims said ahead of the facing the Patriots. “Their ego can get in the way from time to time and I told them all week that it’s easier said than done after beating a team earlier in the season.
“We have to come in with the mindset that every team wants to beat us. Historically, we’ve been a strong team in the area, so if there’s anyone teams want to pull one over on, it’s us.
“The kids might not know the gravity of it because they haven’t been here as long as I have but I try to communicate it to them as I can,” Sims added. “Dylan (Barcus) has done a great job levelling the kids out, kind of like the team dad, and I hope he can get this message across as well.”