Cyclones open season with 2-1 home win
With halftime approaching and the game tied at one, the Cyclones took the lead for good when Junior Ian Shelton assisted the ball to Senior Mason Anderson for a goal giving the Cyclones a 2-1 lead and after tight defense in the second half, their first win of the season.
“That was awesome,” said Cyclones Head Coach Dave Voge. “It was nice because we were using the triangle passing where we’re crossing it over and back over to the backside, off the post and in. That’s what we were trying to get those guys to do and they did it.”
The Panthers struck first early on in the game when Sophomore AJ Draper scored a goal 32 seconds into action, giving the Panthers a 1-0 lead and putting the Cyclones in an early hole.
The Cyclones managed to find their way when Sophomore Spencer Fink scored the first Cyclone goal of the season, tying the game at one.
“I always tell those guys that you’ve got to keep your heads and you’ve got to be very patient in soccer,” Voge said. “We were down 0-1, but that didn’t matter as we kept going and we started to control the game. We had the ball down at their end quite a bit and so then when Spencer cracked that one in there, that was a nice start for us.”
Halftime rolled around with the Cyclones lead 2-1. Voge pulled his team together for some words of inspiration.
“They had a height advantage on us,” he said. “I told our guys, ‘okay, look around. What’s our disadvantage? It’s height. You’ve got to make sure you can get to the ball when it’s down low and we can control it. Otherwise, we could be in trouble.’”
The second half of the game was quiet with nobody scoring with the Cyclones getting the victory and starting their season off with a win at Merrill Field.
“It’s always nice to start the season off with a win,” Voge said. “That team in Panorama, they were very good, they were very athletic and very quick and they had a height advantage on us too.”
The Cyclones will have a few days off before heading out on the road Friday at 7:30 p.m. to battle the Treynor Cardinals, who finished 16-3 last season and were led by Senior Thomas Schwartz with 22 goals, Junior Sam Burmeister with 19 assists and Junior Nate Petersen with 98 saves, saving the ball 91.6% of the time.
“They are always tough every year,” Voge added. “They have a very good program in Treynor. They’re always playing over at Omaha or Gretna or in the city. They’re always tough, always a challenge for us and they’ve come a long way over the last few years, so it’ll definitely be a challenge for us.”