MONROE — In the season home opener, the Cheesemakers battled back from both a man and a goal down to take a second half lead, but allowed two goals in the final eight minutes on the pitch at TR Holyoke Field to lose to Reedsburg 4-3 in a Badger West Conference game Sept. 14.
Monroe (0-4-2, 0-2) took a 1-0 lead at the 9:55 mark of the first half as senior Alex Torres deked a defender in the box and sent an angled shot just inside the far post. The Beavers (4-6-0, 1-2) equalized just over a minute later on a counterattack. The two teams went into halftime squared away at 1-1, but the second half was even more adventurous that the first.
Just over 11 minutes into the second half, Monroe goalie Jack Carter had his kicking foot stepped on while clearing the ball out of the box on a challenge, with no whistle for a foul. He was substituted a mine later. The Beavers immediately went on the attack and won a free kick just over 30 yards out. While the initial kick was saved in the box, the battle for the ball went in Reedsburg’s favor, with the ball being kicked into the back of the net late in the 54th minute, all while Monroe’s backup goalie Hudson Davis was kicked in the head. Davis was replaced minutes later by a re-entering Carter.
Seven seconds after play resumed, it stopped again, with Monroe’s Trey Wyss given a straight red card for voicing is displeasure with the lack of a whistle while his teammate was injured.
“I’m going to take my player at his word — I think something was misheard. I want to clear his name on the record. But obviously it’s just a lesson we can take forward for the rest of this season,” said Monroe coach Matt Bodeau.
Less than a minute after the ejection, and playing 10-on-11 down a goal, the Cheesemakers equalized. This time Sam Tinoco sent a corner kick into the box, with Torres deflecting on first touch past the Reedsburg goalie, making it 2-2 with 55:05 on the clock.
Torres again dazzled with his dribbling again six minutes later, exploding off the ball, cutting through the defense and using his left foot from 25 yards out to smash the ball past the keeper at the 61:56 mark to give his team a 3-2 advantage, and sending the bench into a frenzy.
“I hope everyone understands that there is momentum building and that this is not where this team stops,” Bodeau said.
Playing a man down eventually wore out the Cheesemakers, which had to adjust its formation and shape. With 7 1/2 minutes left, Reedsburg equalized on a shot from nearly 35 yards out. With five minutes to play, a misplayed ball on the defense led to another Beavers breakaway run, with Carter getting beat inside the box.
“We had to change our formation a little bit and build a back four after we were in the lead, then had to go look for that goal after we were down,” Bodeau said.
Despite the loss, Bodeau said he likes what he saw on the pitch. The Cheesemakers are nearly back to full strength from injuries, and if the team can play with the same intensity and limit mistakes, the second half of the season could be fruitful.
“The most noticeable difference between the spring and the fall is that we have a level playing field at each position. Without any seniors in the spring, you had to play a different type of soccer, because every single position is going to be a mismatch because we were playing teams with starting seniors,” Bodeau said. “Now we can take a little more possession and can take our time, have a little more composure and do some more complex buildups, and that’s giving us a lot more chances. We have a lot more shots coming from different positions this season, which is was always the plan. That’s very nice to see.”
The Cheesemakers were set to host Fort Atkinson Sept. 16, followed by a nonconference affair against Wisconsin Heights-Barneveld Sept. 20 at TR Holyoke Field.
Sugar River 11, Columbus 1
COLUMBUS — The Raiders swung into town and dominated the Cardinals Sept. 14, scoring eight first half goals and ending the game early via the mercy rule. Sugar River remains tied atop the Capitol Conference table with three wins and nine points.
Ryan Downing scored three goals for the Raiders, with Aiden Hatleberg, Ryan Hagen and Carter Siegenthaler each adding two goals. Ben Lukszys and Levi Belknap each added a goal of their own. Gavin Boyum assisted twice, while Siegenthaler, Downing, Belknap and Kiehmi Tazeh each added an assist.
