By GANNON HANEVOLD
Moapa Valley Progress
The Moapa Valley High School Boys’ Soccer team has been through some struggles over the years. But the team continues to have a drive to win, no matter what odds they face. With a crucial game at home against their rival Bulldogs on Tuesday, Oct 10, the Pirates hoped to capitalize and position themselves for a possible playoff spot.
In the first half, the Pirates came out strong and scored the first goal of the game. They sent the overfull home crowd into a frenzy as Ramiro Corrales put a line drive ball in the back of the net.
With a 1-0 lead, the Pirates kept attacking. Bryan Robles put a shot attempt towards the goal. But the ball sailed just a tad high and the score would remain.
Eventually, Virgin Valley broke through and tied the game up at 1-1. Later in the half, the Bulldogs would take a 2-1 lead over the Pirates and carry that lead into the half.
In the second half, the Bulldogs scored two more goals to extend their lead to 4-1. But the Pirates would cut the lead down after an Ethynn Fulman goal near the end of the game. Unfortunately, it was too little, too late, and the Pirates would fall 4-2.
“We just got forward and they have some speed in the back,” said Pirate coach Jared Bushman. “We got caught forward on a corner kick and they were able to get back and had a really good shot. We lost track of people we were supposed to be marking and we had to chase the game and it opened up places for them.”
All that’s left for the Pirates to do following the game is look forward, and Bushman said his team did that with their heads high.
“Talking to them after the game, they are positive,” Bushman said. “They’re a good group of kids. They want to win, it’s all they think about. They just want to win that one more game.”
After Moapa’s two goal performance, Bushman said he wasn’t disappointed in the offensive attack, and that more of the flaws fell on the defensive end in that particular match.
The Pirates have struggled with injuries this year. But despite missing key players Israel Rubio and Isaah Fairchild, Moapa Valley continues to fight forward.
“There’s no replacing the players that we have missing,” Bushman said. “They’re being replaced with kids that are really excited to play.”
But Bushman was not concerned about his team’s leadership, referencing players like Gustavo Moreno, who are role models for the team. “Gustavo is a nonstop pumping heart of energy and enthusiasm,” Bushman said.
The season is not over yet for the Pirates, and they’ll try to remain optimistic and hope to grab a few wins at the end of the season.
