By RYAN WALKER
The Norwell Knights soccer team took a quick break from Northeast 8 Conference play against Fort Wayne Concordia Wednesday night at home. The final score ended up 4-2 in favor of the Cadets.
Both teams did not record a shot for the first nine minutes of the game, trading off possession to find a rhythm.
Then, Norwell got the first shot on goal, and suddenly it was game on.
Both teams picked up the pace from that point forward, taking multiple chances at the net or slightly above it.
Concordia struck first with a cross pass from senior Joe Tapp to the right side of the field to senior Werner Heimlich. The pass was crisp, allowing for some heat on the kick from Heimlich, giving Norwell no chance to defend it.
The Cadets lead lasted for about 10 seconds.
Austin DeLeon, the Knights’ leading goal scorer, took the ball at midfield and waited for the official to blow the whistle to resume play. He looked down the field and saw an opening from the goalie out of the box. The whistle blew, and before the public address announcer could even think about announcing who scored Concordia’s goal, DeLeon launched a shot from midfield. Goaltender Gavin Faus looked up and tried to hurry back to the box, but it was too late. DeLeon tied it up.
“They scored a goal, he saw the keeper off his line, he took the kickoff and scored it for a goal. It’s the second time he’s done it this year,” Knights’ head coach Jamie Feldheiser said.
“He did it on a shorter field at Jay County, so that’s why I didn’t think he’d be tempted to try it here. But, he’s two for two now,” he continued.
The leg strength of DeLeon has been crucial for the soccer team this year, as the midfield kick was his 10th on the season and fourth in the conference. He also helps out another team, the football team, as their main kicker.
It didn’t take long before the lead went back to Concordia, scoring two minutes later on another cross. This time, Ayden Salway connected to Nathan Labahn to make it 2-1.
The scoring wasn’t done either, as Salway darted across the right side of the field after a deep pass from Brennon Burget to make it 3-1.
The three goals for the Cadets were scored in less than seven minutes of game time.
“They attack out of their midfield, more than just relying on their forwards,” Feldheiser said. “That’s where our center backs, as well as our midfield, have to make sure that they’re seeing those runners come into the box.”
Neither team scored the rest of the 25 minutes of the half, but Norwell had a few chances on corner kicks in the final seconds that didn’t go in.
In the second half, Concordia dominated the time of possession again but didn’t get an official shot on goal until the 25-minute mark. The first goal connected off of the foot of the Cadets’ James Walker, who took a rebound shot from the goaltender up close.
With both teams putting in substitutions by that point, Norwell got on the board again at the 1:50 mark by Logan Renninger, who took the ball and passed the goaltender into the net.
The game ended at 4-2, with both teams playing hard. It was a frustrating loss for the Knights. One fan was ejected from the game, chirping with an official and a player for Concordia.
Feldheiser had a conversation with his team after the game about the quality of teams he’s scheduling and how it will prepare them for the conference and post-season.
“We kind of talked about the quality of opponent that we’re playing here in the stretches here coming up,” he said. “You can look at their record, they’re about .500, but it’s really deceiving because the SAC (Summit Athletic Conference) is really challenging. They’re very well tested and very skilled. We felt like as coaches, we were letting them dictate the tempo of the game, and we were playing a little timid.”
The Knights have a few games off into the weekend before returning to conference play on the road at 7 p.m. Monday, Sept 19, against DeKalb. The Barons are 4-0 in the NE8.
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