Keeping possession: Ravens triumph over the Wapello Indians and Tipton Tigers
The Hillcrest Ravens defense shut down Wapello and the offense finally found a way to score, notching goals in each half for the 2-0 win on Friday night. The back line of Grant Bender, Aaron Hershberger, Aidan Yoder, and Eli Ours shut down Wapello’s leading scorer, limiting his chances to shots from outside the goalie box. Up front, Jorge Canchola and Noah Miller created opportunities, including a goal by Miller which was ruled to be offsides. Hillcrest finally broke through with four minutes left in the half, when John Hughes gathered a pass from Will Kolck, took one touch and knocked the ball into the net for the 1-0 halftime lead.
The defense continued its excellent play in the 2nd half as it seemed goals would be scarce, a combination of the bumpy field and Wapello dropping its defense deeper. Hillcrest kept pressing, finally finding its second goal with less than a minute left on the clock when Dominic Bouse sent a cross to Will Kolck, who turned the ball and sent it into the corner of the goal. Aiden Krabill recorded 11 saves in goal to preserve the shutout.
Ravens also played Saturday at home with Noah Miller scoring four goals and adding an assist to lead the Ravens to a 7-1 victory over the Tipton Tigers in a match played during a steady rain. Despite going into a light breeze, Hillcrest created numerous chances early on. Twelve minutes into the match, John Hughes hit Noah Miller on a through ball, which he coolly put the ball by the goalie. Minutes later Andrew Starr sent a shot into the box only to see it redirected off the leg of the Tipton defender and into the goal. Miller notched his second goal in the last minutes of the half as he took control of the ball, beat two defenders before sending the ball into the far corner of the net.
Junior Noah Miller scores 4 goals against the Tipton Tigers, matching the school record for Most Goals in a Game.
The second half opened in a flurry as Miller slid a pass to Hughes who deftly one touched his shot by the sliding goalie. A minute later Tipton earned a corner kick. Taking it quickly, they caught the Ravens still finding their defensive marks, and took advantage to make the score 4-1. The Ravens responded, this time with Andrew Starr getting the ball to Miller for his third goal. Minutes later Miller found the ball in midfield and took a shot from outside the 18 for his fourth goal of a game, matching the school record for goals in a game. Eli Ours finished the scoring on an assist from Hughes.
Throughout the game, the defensive unit of Ours, Grant Bender, Aaron Hershberger and Aidan Yoder played extremely well, especially given the wet conditions. Dominic Bouse, Jorge Canchola, and Will Kolk did a great job of helping to control the midfield, with Canchola in particular helping quarterback the offense. Aiden Krabill had four saves in goal, again playing well in the wet conditions.
Hillcrest moves to 4-3 overall. The Ravens return to action Monday, traveling to Central Lee and Tuesday traveling to Danville.