Rock Bridge takes out frustrations of first season loss on Smith Cotton
The Rock Bridge soccer team erased any negativity that might have lingered after its first loss of the season.
The Bruins beat Smith-Cotton 5-0 on Monday at Cosmopolitan Park, scoring three goals in the first 18 minutes.
The Bruins (12-1-2) lost 4-0 to Christian Brothers College on Friday in the semifinals of the Catholic Youth Council/ Bob Guelker Memorial Tournament, but responded well against the Tigers (3-8).
They did it without head coach David Graham, who didn’t attend because of a one-game suspension after the Bruins collected their 10th yellow card of the season against CBC.
“It’s not my intention to lose another game this year, and I hope it’s not yours,” Graham told the Bruins before they warmed up. State rules then forced him to leave the field.
Adam Reed began the scoring in the seventh minute on an assist from Michael Ferguson. Then David Hilderbrand and Casey Martin scored to make it 3-0 midway through the first half. Tanner Mills didn’t face a shot on goal before Adam Andrews replaced him in the 66th minute.
The Bruins misfired on several good chances, going scoreless in the next 50 minutes until Ferguson added two late goals.
“It was a little bit slow at first. We scored the goals but didn’t look as sharp as I’d like in the first half,” assistant coach Joe Ritter said. “A little bit better in the second half, even though we only put it in two. The finishing leaves a bit to be desired, but 5-0 is not a bad result.”
After getting his sixth goal of the season early, Reed shot wide on three more scoring opportunities in the second half.
“It was a little frustrating. We didn’t play as well as we could have but we played well enough to win,” Reed said. “Without our coach here it was a little bit tougher.”
Ferguson scored his 19th and 20th goals playing with an upset stomach.
“I’m just going to go and throw up and then I’ll be good to go,” he told Ritter and assistant coach Myles Hinkel when he came out of the game early in the second half.
Andrews made sure the Bruins earned their 10th shutout in the last 10 minutes of the game with saves in the 71st and 77th minutes.