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Martinsville shuts out Cave Spring
Boys Region IV Soccer Quarterfinals
Martinsville's Will Reynolds makes the save in Tuesday night's game against Cave Spring.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
By JOHNNY BUCK - Bulletin Sports Editor
Perhaps Martinsville’s boys soccer players didn’t know they should be intimidated during their Region IV quarterfinal contest Tuesday at Dan Greene Memorial Stadium.
“We’ve never beaten Cave Spring,” said MHS coach Pete Scouras. “They used to be a triple-A team, and they would thump us pretty hard. Of course, these kids were babies at that time.”
Looks like those babies have grown up.
The Bulldogs shut out the Knights 2-0 Tuesday, in the process advancing to face Pulaski County in Thursday’s regional semifinal at Martinsville.
The biggest factor in the outcome? According to Cave Spring coach Matthew Neale, it was pretty simple.
“They took their opportunities, and we hit the crossbar with ours,” he said. “I think that was the difference in the game.”
Indeed, Martinsville had just three shots on goal in the first half but converted twice.
Cody Draper put MHS up 1-0 in the 30th minute on a header in the box. He was assisted by a Garrett VanNutt cross.
Robbie Armbrister got the second and final goal in first-half stoppage time, heading a VanNutt cornerkick into an open net after the Cave Spring keeper made an unsuccessful attempt to clear the ball in the air.
“The 10 seniors on this team didn’t want this to be their last game,” said Armbrister, “so we had pressure and motivation.”
Martinsville (17-2 overall) remained on the attack early in the second half, and it wasn’t until the Bulldogs began to play more conservatively that Cave Spring threatened.
Perhaps the Knights’ best scoring chance came in the 57th minute, when a shot hit the crossbar and came down in the goal box. A Cave Spring player hit the loose ball over the goal, however.
“Sometimes this game is a difference of inches, and that’s the way it was tonight,” said Neale. “We were a little unlucky.”
MHS goalie Will Reynolds extended his state-record shutout mark to 51 over a still-going four-year career.
Scouras felt it was one of Reynolds’ most impressive.
“To do that against Cave Spring is just remarkable,” he said. “I don’t know if they’ve been shutout all year.”
For the game, the Knights out-shot MHS 9-8, though the Bulldogs held a 4-3 advantage in cornerkicks.
MHS will face Pulaski County, which finished third in the River Ridge District during the regular season before taking second in the district tournament.
Cave Spring (12-4-2 overall) was second in the River Ridge during the regular season before taking third in the RR tourney.
“If you beat anybody in the River Ridge, that’s a plus for your team, because they’re so tough,” Scouras said.
“This should give some guys some confidence,” he said of his players. “If nothing else, they should feel like they can play with these guys.”
BOX SCORE
Martinsville 2
Cave Spring 0
First Half
M — C. Draper goal. G. VanNutt ast. 29:22.
M — R. Armbrister goal. G. VanNutt ast. 38:00.
Second Half
No scoring.
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