Tonganoxie High soccer players were all smiles and made a unanimous vote after their season-opening victory Friday against Baldwin: gather for a team meal.

THS players were hungry for a win against the Bulldogs, a squad the team had not defeated during Brian Kroll’s tenure at THS. Kroll thought the victory might even have been the program’s first against BHS, even dating beyond Kroll’s time with the squad.

Either way, the Chieftains definitely opened the season on the right foot with a 5-1 victory against the Bulldogs at Chieftain Park.

Tongaonxie struck first with sophomore Chandler Caldwell score with 28:25 left in the first half.

The game remained tight throughout the first. The Bulldogs had chances to score an equalizer, but THS senior goalie Alex Kroll jumped high and side to side to prevent a handful of Baldwin shots on goal.

“He played like a very seasoned goalkeeper tonight,” Brian Kroll said.

THS headed into intermission with a 1-0 lead and then the floodgates opened in the second half.

Senior Tyler Novotney punched in a goal with 32:11 left in the game. Just more than a minute later, junior Alec Richert knocked in his first goal of the season.

BHS sophomore Blayne Chapman put Baldwin with a penalty kick, but THS junior Jay Willcutt kept the game out of reach with two goals. Willcutt scored with 15:29 left in the game and struck again just more than a minute later at the 14:23 mark.

Baldwin junior Caleb Othick was whistled for a yellow card on a physical play and then a red card for language during the game.

The victory improved THS to 1-0 on the season.

It marks the first time Kroll has opened the season 1-0 as THS coach, as Baldwin has been the opening match the last several years.

The coach was pleased with his team’s season-opening effort. The squad was sharp offensively and defensively. He said the team deserved to enjoy the victory over the weekend before getting ready for games this week.

As with any victory, though, a coach always can look for ways to improve.

“We need to get the ball off the foot quicker,” he said.

Tonganoxie played at home again Tuesday with a game against Bonner Springs after The Mirror’s deadline.

THS continues its homestand about 6 p.m. Thursday against Basehor-Linwood. The varsity game will start after the junior varsity game, which is set for 4:30 p.m. at Chieftain Park.

The Chieftains hit the road for the first time with a 6 p.m. match next Tuesday against Atchison.