With Roncalli putting pressure on Columbus East from the opening whistle, it was only a matter of time before the Rebels broke through.
It occurred in the 12th minute when Roncalli’s Kelly Grube took advantage of an Olympians error to put in a goal. East made a serious charge in the second half but the Rebels stopped the momentum by adding an insurance goal for a 3-1 win.
East coach Ilya Schwartzman said it was a tale of two different halves of soccer for his team.
“In the first half, it was difficult because we did not have everybody out and ready to play,” Schwartzman said. “Roncalli is an excellent team. They played very high-quality soccer and moved the ball really well. It was hard for us to pressure them because we were not pressuring together.”
Just before the half, in the 38th minute, the Olympians (4-5-1) had a bad break when a foul was called on the right side just inside the goal box and Rebels were awarded a penalty kick. Josie Asher converted the PK for a 2-0 lead at the half.
East got on the board in the 54th minute when Emily Stiles delivered an excellent corner kick that landed right in front of the goal. After several deflections off of players and the post, Addy Galarno got the last touch on the ball to put it through to cut into the deficit.
“We were much more energized in the second half,” Schwartzman said. “We got a quicker lineup in and had better pressure on the ball. We did a much better job possessing and distributing the ball and getting opportunities. I was very pleased with how they performed in the second half.”
The third goal for Roncalli came in the 64th minute when Sydney Young was on the receiving end of a free kick and scored.
The Olympians had five shots on goal. Goalkeeper Brooke Hamblen recorded eight saves.
East has not lost in Hoosier Hills Conference play and is still in contention for the conference crown but the Olympians have a huge matchup ahead when they travel to New Albany at 11 a.m. Saturday.
“We’ll be good for Saturday, based on how our performance was today (in the second half),” Stiles said. “We did great, and we just have to keep it up.”
