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St. Marys' Calvin Brown (5) leaps to avoid a sliding Lucas Edwards of Sidney (22) during Thursday's season-opening match at Roughrider Field. The Roughriders rallied from a 1-0 halftime deficit to get the win over the Yellow Jackets.
ST. MARYS - Some first- game jitters saw St. Marys' boys soccer team trail Sidney 1-0 late in the first half, but a trio of goals in the second 40 minutes gave the Roughriders more than enough to beat the Yellow Jackets 3-1 in their season opener.
The win also marks coach Josh Slusher's first as the head coach of the Roughriders after three years as an assistant.
"It feels good," said Slusher. "I was nervous, but I'm glad we got the win."
St. Marys opened the game on the front foot as Sidney began nearly 80 minutes of defense. The Roughriders opened the game with the first few shots, including a header from Nick Hertenstein that just went over the bar during the opening 20 minutes.
The barrage of shots continued for the hosts over the next 15 minutes. Reid Kantner used any free space he got to test the Sidney keeper, but the score still sat at 0-0 with just five minutes to go.
That's when the Yellow Jackets had their moment. A long ball found the foot of Connor Mackall, who broke away from the St. Marys back line and ran down the right wing. The junior, a listed defender, showed all the poise of a striker and slotted the ball across the net and just past the stretch of St. Marys keeper Kyle Ibrahim to put the visitors ahed with three minutes left in the half.
While St. Marys responded well to end the half, the team still trailed Sidney 1-0 when the whistle blew for halftime. The Roughriders held a 10-4 advantage in total shots, but the teams were even at two in shots on goal in the first half.
St. Marys' Nickales Dieringer (32) tries to take the ball away from Sidney's Harouna N'diaye during Thursday's game.
With the team talks over, St. Marys let the play speak for itself in the second half. More shots came and went, and with 27:17 on the clock one finally went in.
Jackson Green was the hero for the 'Riders. It was down the same wing Mackall scored from, but instead of a low shot, Green fired it into the roof of the net. It was too fast for keeper John Martin, and St. Marys had the momentum back at 1-1.
Pressure from the St. Marys midfield kept Sidney without a shot for most of the half, with the blue and gold taking full advantage of their strength. After 17 minutes of chances came and went, Colten Spray gave St. Marys the lead.
A 'Riders corner was reworked to Tate Slusher in the right corner, and his pass found the foot of Spray outside the box. The senior drove his right foot through it, and the effort sent the ball to the bottom left corner past the dive of new keeper Max Bales.
St. Marys' Reid Kantner (42) dribbles through the Sidney defense during Thursday's non-conference match at Roughrider Field.
St. Marys held a 2-1 lead with under 11 minutes left but wanted more. Four minutes later they got it, as Kantner followed up Spray's goal with an outside the box finish of his own. The junior, who made the All-Western Buckeye League third team, gave his team a 3-1 lead and ran to the student section to celebrate.
"There were a lot of close shots in the first half, and in the second half they stuck to the game plan and it worked out," said coach Slusher.
That was it for the action as the final few minutes ticked off the clock and gave the home fans something to cheer about.
Slusher finished with two assists in the match with Reid Klopfenstein getting the third. Ibrahim finished with three saves on the day for St. Marys. The 'Riders are back in action Aug. 22 at Bryan, with kickoff set for 11 a.m.
