Pirate Soccer Takes Loss To Equipo

By GANNON HANEVOLD

Moapa Valley Progress

The Moapa Valley High School Boys Soccer team started the week on Tuesday, September 4, with a road matchup against the SLAM Bulls. Earlier in the season, the Bulls beat the Pirates’ 3A rival Boulder City Eagles. So the Moapa team knew where the game might put them in comparison to their opponents.

The Bulls turned out to be no match for the Pirates. The Moapa boys scored an impressive five goals to put SLAM out of it early. Though the Bulls added a couple goals late to make things interesting, it would still be Moapa Valley leaving with a 5-3 victory in the end.

Leading the Pirates in scoring would be Sebastean Gutierrez and Gabriel Hernandez with two apiece. Hernandez, a captain for the Pirates, added two assists as well.

Defensively, it would be Bryton Westwood who took charge for the Pirates. Head coach Randy Tobler added praise for the defenseman. “Bryton probably had his best defensive game I’ve ever seen him play,” Tobler said. “He had a lot of stops.”

Tobler attributed much of the team’s success to a rollover from their tournament championship over the weekend. “I think the kids were playing on a high and they’ve seen that they can play with these teams,” Tobler said. “We let them have some easy ones to get back in but I felt we were quite a bit better. It shows us where we are in our division.”

On Friday, the Pirates would travel again for their second road game in three days. This time, Moapa would take on Equipo Academy in Las Vegas. Equipo, a talented squad, boasted arguably one of the toughest contests the Pirates have faced yet. To make matters worse for Moapa players, the elements weren’t ideal.

“It was on turf and it was a hot day so field conditions weren’t the best,” Tobler said
Even so, the first half would be pretty evenly matched. Neither side’s defensemen were willing to give an inch, leading to a 0-0 deadlock tie at the intermission.

In the second half, things stayed close. It wasn’t until very late in the game that the tie was finally broken. Equipo would take a 1-0 lead with little time on the clock.

At this point, Tobler was in a tough situation in which he was looking to do what it takes to win. After toying with the formations and moving Eirik Monsvoll upward to increase the team’s shots on goal, the Pirates were forced to play a bit differently. Limited defenders were on the field at this point, providing opportunities for Equipo to extend their lead.

The risks taken on Moapa’s end were necessary but did not prove fruitful as Equipo would score two goals late to seal their victory. The Pirates left falling 3-0.
“We had some opportunities that could have gone either way,” Tobler said. “That was probably the best team we’ve played.”

The coach was more analytical as he described the team’s flaws. They generally focused on breaking from the working formula from the tournament.
“We didn’t look for the team as much,” Tobler said. “There was a lot of individual play that wasn’t bad, but it’s tough to do that on a hot field against a tough opponent. It wears you out.”