MOUNT VERNON — The Mount Vernon boys soccer team never got into the flow of the game Tuesday, falling to Ohio Capital Conference rival Olentangy Orange, 2-0, at Yellow Jacket Stadium.
“They are a real nice team. They had four or five real good opportunities, scoring on two of them. They were able to capitalize,” said Mount Vernon coach Scott Dapprich. “We did not have a chance to get into the attacking third like I thought we should. I did not get the guys as ready as I thought I should. We just never got into the flow of the game. It’s hard when you’re amped up for a big game like this.”
Orange had handed the Jackets their only conference loss a year ago and MV was looking for a bit of revenge. The bigger and more physical Pioneer squad didn’t give them much of a chance.
Mount Vernon (3-1) had an opportunity midway through the first half when a foul was called on Orange in the MV penalty box. But, Brandyn McQuigg’s penalty kick sailed wide left and the game remained knotted at zero.
Like any good team would, Orange (3-0) pounced when handed the opportunity, scoring when Jesus Villarroel put it in after a scramble in front of the net just two minutes later.
“We got a little deflated with emotion. And good teams bounce back and now attack. They attacked and we did not respond,” Dapprich said.
The Pioneers wasted no time in putting an exclamation point on the game in the second half, scoring just 42 seconds after intermission when Walter Ford headed in a nice pass into the box.
Mount Vernon didn’t go away easily, though, peppering the Orange side of the field with plenty of scoring opportunities. But, the Pioneer defense was up to the challenge, keeping all six MV shots out of the net.
“In the midfield, they were very aggressive. They made it rough passing the ball. We’d make two or three passes, then the next one wasn’t on target. I usually don’t see that from this group, because we’re such a good passing team,” Dapprich said.
Orange finished with 10 shots on goal, including six in the first half. Mount Vernon goalie Chris Omahan made eight saves.
The Jackets will try to pick things back up Thursday when they travel to Mansfield Madison to take on the Rams at 5:30 p.m.
