Class 3A No. 18 Columbus East had one final tuneup before its important crosstown rival game with Columbus North when it faced Bloomington North Tuesday night in boys soccer action at Richard Wigh Soccer Complex.
The Olympians had command throughout most of the game and fended off some Cougar charges late to preserve the shutout with a 2-0 victory.
“It was a solid performance for us, probably the best of the season so far,” East coach Josh Gonsior said. “We built on the things that we felt were a little suspect in the first few games, and practices have been challenging, the kids have worked hard and I think we built on those performances and really ramped up our level today.”
In the first 10 minutes of the contest, Bloomington North controlled much of the offensive possession. The rest of the first half, the Olympians (2-1-1) took command, and they found their first great opportunity in the 14th minute when Logan Cline received the ball forward and took a couple dribbles past the defenders, including the goalkeeper. His shot slowly rolled in the goal for a 1-0 lead.
The score remained that way until halftime.
In the second half, East controlled the possession early starting the second half and doubled its score when Alberto Galindo Sanchez shot from about 30 yards out to find the net for a 2-0 lead. The Cougars had chances to avoid the shutout late in the game, but Olympians keeper Pete Coriden and the back line fended off the attack.
Coriden posted five saves in posting his first career shutout.
East took 17 shots, with eight of them on goal. The Cougars took 10 shots, with five on goal.
The Olympians now turns their attention to Columbus North. East has won the past three meetings against its rival.
“I think ultimately it is playing with passion the Columbus East way,” Gonsior said. “We saw that tonight, and maybe we didn’t see that over the weekend at Center Grove. It was a super-positive thing tonight to see that, and I think that’s what it’s going to take to push us over the edge.”
The varsity kickoff for the East-North game is set for around 7:30 p.m. Thursday.
