After a pair of losses to begin the season, the Columbus North boys soccer team has found its rhythm.
The Bull Dogs went 3-0 in the past week. The capper came Saturday in a 4-1 victory against Westfield.
“I felt the first two games we played extremely well, and the results just didn’t come for us,” said senior Nick Beales, who scored the final two goals. “The last two games, it was a little shaky, but we got the wins, and today we turned around and scored four goals on them and played very well.”
The Shamrocks (3-4) scored first in the 14th minute. North (3-2) tied the game before halftime when Alex McGill put in a cross from Finn Anderson in the 35th minute.
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The Bull Dogs broke the tie with a pair of goals in the 54th minute. Jannis Anderson stuck in a rebound off a deflection from a Rico Hollenkamp free kick. Then, 24 seconds later, Beales took a lead pass from Hollenkamp and beat Westfield keeper Juan Monarrez.
North added an insurance goal in the 60th minute when Beales scored off a pass from Jake Osborne.
“After we let that first goal in, I think everybody started to realize ‘We have to pick it up,’” Beales said. “We came together as a team and played as a team, and it obviously showed with the scoreline, so I’m proud of us.”
The Bull Dogs outshot the Shamrocks 22-10. North put 14 shots on goal to six for Westfield.
Three keepers shared time in goal for the Bull Dogs. Zach Green played the first half and recorded four saves, Mark Salle-Tabor did not face a shot on goal in the first 28 minutes of the second half and Drew Cvelbar made one save in the final 12 minutes.
“I felt the team put together a bit more of a mature performance today that we did in our last competition,” North coach Andy Glover said. “So I’m very pleased with the team at the moment, although there’s no room to be content because we have a very robust schedule ahead of us in the coming week.”
The Bull Dogs play four games in three days later this week. After a Conference Indiana battle Thursday at Southport, they play No. 2 Avon on Friday and No. 18 Fort Wayne Canterbury and Lawrence Central on Saturday in the North Central Invitational.
“We have a little bit of momentum,” Glover said. “But the schedule is difficult. We just want to make sure the schedule prepares us to have the best product we can end up with at the end of the season. We’re striving to reach our potential and time things well.”
