Game 1

Game 1 – 8/29/07
Rebels Start Season with 2-0 Win Over Rival Westminster

The Priory J.V. soccer team began its season with a tough match against league rival Westminster. The heat and humidity were brutal at the start of the match, but the temperature did not slow the pace of the game.

The action in the first half was back and forth with each team exchanging quality chances. The Rebels’ best opportunities to score came on corner kicks when freshman Brendan Kelly made it clear to the Wildcats that he would win any ball that came in the box. The Wildcats had a couple of first half opportunities, but could not find their way through the tenacious Rebel defense led by sophomore sweeper Dan Croghan. Marking backs Doug Hall and Kevin Hess spent the afternoon preventing the Wildcat forwards from touching the ball and Sophomore Brandon Wehking was always ready to break up a Westminster attack and spark a Rebel counterattack. As halftime loomed, the Rebels’ chances became more bountiful and the Westminster defense started to show some cracks. Sophomore Sam Tankersley displayed some clever footwork and ball distribution skills that stretched the Westminster defense thin and provided opportunities for the Rebel attack. Just before the halftime whistle, freshman Tony Cribbin made a fearless run down the right wing, beat two defenders, and then fired a shot over the goal. At halftime, it was clear that the Rebels were knocking on the door and getting ready to kick their way through it.

The Rebels jumped on the Wildcats at the beginning of the second half and really started to control the play. As time passed, it became clear that the Rebels had a deeper bench than the Wildcats who began to show fatigue and frustration. Twelve minutes into the half, the Rebels earned a corner kick, and a goal off of Brendan Kelly’s head seemed imminent to everyone on the field. As the ball came into the box off of sophomore Patrick Mulvihill’s foot, a Wildcat defender decided that he wasn’t going to get beat to the ball again. He carelessly grabbed Kelly and this act of frustration was immediately followed by a whistle from the referee. Sophomore James Kopfensteiner stepped up to take the penalty shot and sneaked it by the keeper to give the Rebels their first goal of the season and a 1-0 lead. The Rebels controlled the action for the majority of the second half and kept the ball on the Westminster side of the field. When the Wildcats were able to mount any attack, junior goalkeeper Bobby Heitz was there to provide a steady presence in the net. As the clock was winding down, the Rebels stayed on the attack. With about ten minutes remaining, sophomore Ragen Frost made a run down the left wing, made a nifty turn to beat his man in the corner, and then made a perfect drop pass to Andrew Erker who was just arriving at the top of the box. Erker ripped a shot with the outside of his foot that whistled just wide of the right post. In the final minutes of the half the Wildcats were pushing up in the attack, and the Rebels constantly found themselves on counterattacks with numbers. With 2 minutes remaining, Sam Tankersley found himself in a 2 on 1 with space to work. He dribbled into the Wildcat box and prepared to rip a shot, but was tackled and earned the Rebel’s a second penalty kick. “Tank” stepped up to the spot, took a flawless penalty kick the found the bottom right of the goal, and gave the Rebels a 2-0 lead. This score held through the final minutes, and the Rebels made a statement to the rest of the ABC league with their 2-0 victory over Westminster.

Goals: Kopfensteiner (1), Tankersley (1)
Shutout: Heitz
Game Balls: Kelly, Kopfensteiner