Senior night win buoys soccer team
The soccer team high-fived the crowd at least three times. Players dogpiled teammates. They even dumped the water cooler on coach Harold Pittman.
Why? Who needs a reason to act crazy after a win especially after a win on senior night.
For seniors Marcy Dodge, Dwight Clarkson and Noah Sneed, it didn’t feel as if their high school soccer days were nearly done.
“I couldn’t believe it was my year,” Dodge said after the 3-1 win against Perry-Lecompton last week. “I wish we could have beaten ’em by a few more.”
Rodney Lobb scored the go-ahead goal with about 23 minutes left in the second half, and Scott Breuer solidified the win with a shot through the goalie’s hands with about three minutes to play.
The win helped reduce the pain of two losses earlier in the week.
The Chieftains lost in the final minute of the game to Lansing. Pittman called the game a defensive battle.
The team had also lost 3-0 to DeSoto. That game started promisingly enough. Tonganoxie attacked the DeSoto goal the entire first half. But, in the second half, the team fell apart, allowing three goals who slipped behind the defense.
Clarkson said he wasn’t sure whether the team could come back from the two difficult losses, but it did.
“We had a lot of help from the D,” Sneed said.
That defense, time and again, was Kyle Rodell. Rodell has saved numerous goals and single-handedly stopped the other team’s offense throughout the season, a fact the seniors acknowledged.
“Kyle Rodell, he’s the heart of this team,” Clarkson said.
Junior varsity notes
The junior varsity lost 5-0 to Lansing. The junior varsity lost 1-0 to DeSoto. The junior varsity did not play Perry-Lecompton.
Up next
The team played at Hayden Tuesday night. The team plays at Shawnee Heights Thursday.