Sports
Downers South Nets 3-1 Regional Soccer Win Over Young
Aggressive, solid play gives the Mustangs the victory in the regional opener.
The Downers South Mustangs made their opening regional soccer match against the Whitney Young Dolphins look easy, for the most part. Thanks to solid, aggressive play by the offense and a few good turns of fortune, the Mustangs won the opener at Oak Park and River Forest High School 3-1 on Tuesday.
The Mustangs (12-5-4) played tough and aggressive from the opening kick. Much of the first half was spent in the Whitney Young zone and near midfield. The Mustangs passed the ball very well and kept the Dolphins (7-11-1) on their toes. The Dolphins had only seven shots on goal the entire game and none in the second half. The Mustangs had 15 for the game.
After a few missed chances early, the Mustangs drew first blood with 22:40 left in the first half. Senior midfielder Cori Mosiman scored on a quick pass from senior midfielder Joe McLean. Five minutes later, senior midfielder Zach Baleski scored on a solo drive, beating goalie Charlie Stanton to put the Mustangs up 2-0.
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The Dolphins, however, came to life early in the second half. They put together a series of quick attacks against the Mustangs defense, which seemed to be playing too far up in their zone. After a few near-misses, junior forward Jake O'Hagan got one past goalie Sam Hadley after a misplayed header by the Mustangs defense with 31:52 remaining in the second half.
"We got a little complacent in the second half," Mustangs coach Jon Stapleton said. "(We) started getting away from what worked so well for us."
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The turning point of the match came a few minutes later. The Dolphins got a free kick after a handball by Mustangs defender Tim Herilhy. The kick went past the Mustangs' wall, and Dolphins senior forward Cole Keutzer had a wide-open shot to tie the game. Instead, the ball went high and brushed off the crossbar.
After that turn of events, the Mustangs grabbed the momentum and kept the Dolphins on the defensive for most of the remainder of the game. Senior midfielder Conor Kelch gave the Mustangs an insurance goal midway through the second half to keep the game out of reach.
"We possessed the ball pretty well and we made some really good plays," Stapleton said.
The Mustangs will play the winner of the De La Salle/Oak Park and River Forest game on Friday.
