YELLOW SPRINGS — Utilizing lots of team speed, and maybe taking advantage of a good first-half tailwind, the host Yellow Springs Bulldogs boys soccer team claimed a 4-2 win to defeat Metro Buckeye Conference rival Xenia Christian, Thursday night on Homecoming night.
Dayton Dunbar spoiled the girls soccer team’s homecoming fortunes with a 1-0 Wolverine win.
All six goals scored in the two games were scored in the south goal with the wind behind the scorers’ backs.
Kaner Butler got off a pass to Bulldogs teammate Aaron Sherwood who scored from the right side at the 38:12 mark of the first half, for a 1-0 Yellow Springs boys lead.
With his back to the Ambassadors goal, Butler then looped a kick over his head and into the goal to put Yellow Springs out in front, 2-0, with about 20 minutes yet to play in the first half.
Then the Metro Buckeye Conference’s leading scorer got into the act.
With 26:25 left in the opening half, Yellow Springs’ Joe Plumer juked to his right and his Xenia Christian defender fell down. Plumer then turned to his left and drilled a hard shot into the top center of the Ambassador goal for a 3-0 Bulldog lead. Plumer now has 18 goals this season to go with 11 assists to lead the MBC.
Roughly a minute later, Yellow Springs’ Jonathan Clark got off a shot from about the same 30-yard distance as Plumer’s score, with the same result. That put the Bulldogs out in front, 4-0 with 26:48 yet to play in the half. Yellow Springs coach Ben Van Ausdal wasn’t entirely happy with his team’s performance, especially in the second half.
“I was worried about the wind, but Xenia Christian came out and played really well in the second half. I think my boys may have come out a little flat in the second half, I think they may have gotten a little over confident,” Van Ausdal said. “At the same time, I think Xenia Christian with the wind behind them, I think they came out feeling a little more confident that they could play a little better than they did in the first half.”
In the second half, with that 21 mph wind at their back, Xenia Christian began to mount an offensive.
First, Sam Harmon scored with five minutes gone in the second half to put Xenia Christian on the board, trailing 4-1.
Then, at the 32:24 mark of the second half, Harmon stole the ball just inside Yellow Springs territory, drove down the left side and scored with a quick left-to-right shot, to cut the Bulldog lead in half at 4-2.
“Sam’s having a solid season for us, and those scores put us right back into the match,” Xenia Christian coach Landon Stapleton said. “I was very proud of how our guys played in the second half. It was awesome to see them play that well.”
The Bulldogs (7-3-1, 4-0-0 MBC) have a nonleague game at Arcanum Franklin Monroe at 2 p.m. Saturday.
Xenia Christian (6-7-1, 0-3-0 MBC) hosts Dayton Christian at 5 p.m. Thursday.
Dayton Dunbar 1, Yellow Springs 0
In the girls game, Dunbar’s Ka’Jeza Hawkins drove deep down the right side into Bulldogs territory, then got off a quick right-to-left shot from about five yards out for the score.
“We had a tough loss to Xenia Christian on Tuesday (10-0 at the Athlete’s In Action Sports Complex), and I don’t think we completely regrouped from that,” Bulldogs coach Sarah Wallis said. “I don’t think the wind was a factor. Dunbar just worked harder than we did tonight.”
Yellow Springs (1-9) next has a noon game Saturday at Franklin Monroe.
FINAL HOME GAME RESCHEDULED — Originally scheduled for Oct. 8, the Bulldogs will host Fairborn for a match on Oct. 17, which will also be Senior Night. The girls team will host Springfield for a 5:30 p.m. contest, then the boys will host the Skyhawks at approximately 7 p.m.
