Blue skies and a bright midday sun made for a picturesque opening day at Spartan Fields. The match on the field, however, was far less ideal for the St. Peter’s Spartans boys soccer squad as they fell to Clear Fork, 7-0, in the home opener.
The Colts’ Clay Leedy broke the ice at 31:55 with Griffin Robinnette and David McKinley both assisting. Roughly 12 minutes later, Brad Studenmund scored to make it 2-0.
With a handful of players absent, the Spartans opened their season with just 10 players on the field. That led Spartans Head Coach Don Rissover to shift a few of his players into positions they do not normally play, especially on defense.
Clear Fork tested St. Peter’s defense early and often, unloading all of their 16 shots in the first half. Spartan sophomore keeper Jacob Gurski snagged 6 saves.
Defensive positioning is an area that Rissover said the team will be working on moving forward. “From today, [we will work on] position and talking. Talking to each other so you don’t get out of position and you’re back and you where people are at.”
The Spartans managed the deficit early but with no reserves to spell St Peter’s players, the Colt began to dominate possession and scoring.
Midway through one frame, the floodgates opened. The Colts added three goals in a little over three minutes. Ben Sprang weaved through defenders to add a third score, David McKinley converted a Caleb Merendino assist. About a minute later, Merendino followed a ball off the cross bar to add a goal of his own.
McKinley and Michael Shupe each notched another goal before half to move the score to 7-0.
The Colts looked exactly like the senior-laden squad they are – the squad’s composition includes ten seniors.
“We’re kind of built right now for success if we can stay healthy and execute we should be just fine,” noted Colt’s Head Coach Brian Kinnard.
Considering that his entire team played every minute, Rissover was satisfied with his Spartans’ effort.
“None of them quit and that’s all you can ask. That’s all you can ask,” said the veteran coach.
Up next, Spartans (0-1-0) head to Smithville and the Colts (1-0-0) are at Orville. Both games are on Tuesday.
Sportsmanship
After the seventh score hit the back of the net, Kinnard stepped to the touchline, waved both arms and told his squad, “We’re done.” Clear Fork simply played for possession for the remainder of the match, passing up further opportunities to fill the stat sheet.
Primed for Success
The Colts open up conference play at Orville on Tuesday.
“It’s always important to get points right away in the conference. It’s hard to come by points sometimes we’ve got some competitive teams,” said Kinnard.
In 2013, the Colt’s finished at just behind runner-up Lexington and champion Ashland. Their 2014 squad’s high level of experience and balance should put the Colts squarely in the mix for another top 3 finish.
“We’ve got really competitive guys. Our practice sessions have been great, everybody’s pushing each other,” said Kinnard. “As hard as they want to work, they sky’s the limit.”
Shots:
Spartans, 2. Colts, 16.
Saves:
Spartans, 6. Colts, 2.
Corner Kicks:
Spartans, 2. Colts 4.
