New Richmond soccer loses showdown with Amery
The showdown between the defending Middle Border Conference boys soccer co-champions was everything you’d expect from the conference’s top two programs.
- Aaron Daul and Thomas Bauer
The showdown between the defending Middle Border Conference boys soccer co-champions was everything you’d expect from the conference’s top two programs.
New Richmond and Amery met for the first time this season last Thursday on the Tigers’ home turf. The hard-fought clash went to Amery by a 3-2 score. The teams will meet again in the second round of conference play at Amery on Thursday, Sept. 20.
The Tigers and Warriors are vastly different in their soccer styles. Amery overloads the defensive end of the field and plays for scoring chances on long through-balls. The Tigers use a more balanced, ball-control approach.
Amery scored the only goal of the first half on a corner kick.
The Tigers surged back to take a 2-1 lead on the first 10 minutes of the second half. The Tigers got goals from Joey Turnipseed and Cole Olson and appeared to have Amery on the ropes.
Because of the 90-degree heat, officials were giving the players water breaks at the midpoint of each half. The timing of the second half break benefitted Amery, giving the Warriors a chance to regroup, while the Tigers’ momentum faded.
Amery scored twice in the final seven minutes to win the game. The tying goal was the result of a turnover by the Tiger defense, which led to a breakaway for Amery leading scorer Jake Mullendore. Amery scored the winner two minutes later off a free kick, with the winning header bouncing off the goal post and into the net.
The Tigers outshot Amery 12-6. Tiger coach Pete Melloy was pleased with the effort from the Tigers.
“We’re knocking the ball around much better. They’re taking the loss hard, but they’re not letting it hold them back.”
Win over Somerset
Another strong start to the second half was the key for the Tigers last Tuesday in their 5-1 win at Somerset.
New Richmond scored the only goal of the first half when Eric Miller converted on a penalty kick from 10 yards out in the game’s 24th minute.
The Tigers took charge by scoring three times in the first 10 minutes of the second half. The Tigers worked to spread out Somerset’s defense, giving the Tigers the chance to use their speed to win one-on-one matchups. That resulted in goals from Aaron Daul, Miller and Turnipseed. Josh Geigle scored the Tigers’ final goal.
Melloy said depth was one of the key factors for the Tigers. He rotated in fresh players, crediting Andy Zietlow as one of the players who helped energize the team in a reserve role.
Last Monday the Tigers scored a 6-0 win over Cumberland. The Tigers started slowly, scoring twice in the first half. Melloy said the Tigers were holding onto the ball far too long, dribbling the ball around the field instead of making passes that would cover the same distance, only much quicker.
“We needed to let the ball do the work,” Melloy said.
The Tigers got the message. They snapped the ball around the field much more crisply in the second half, leading to four goals.
Miller scored three of the Tigers’ goals against Cumberland, with Daul scoring twice and Charlie L’Allier scoring once.
Road games abound
The next three outings for the Tigers will be on the road. On Friday they travel into the Twin Cities to play one of Minnesota’s top programs, Prairie Seed Academy. The Tigers return to the MBC schedule next week, with games at Spooner on Monday and Osceola on Tuesday.
Tags: sports, tigers, soccer, prep
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