Mount Vernon News

MOUNT VERNON — Even good teams lose from time to time, but they are able to bounce back, and perform well during their next contest. After dropping a tough decision to Olentangy on Tuesday, the Mount Vernon High School boys soccer team was able to kick things back in gear and pick up a 5-1 victory over visiting Newark. The win should give the Yellow Jackets an extra boost of momentum heading into the final week of the regular season.

“I thought we did a really good job of responding after the way that we played on Tuesday,” said Mount Vernon head coach Scott Dapprich. “We were able to get a lot more out of the guys today. We moved some people around, and that created a lot of the chances that were out there tonight.”

Evan Green was able to pick up the opening goal of the game, taking a pass from Ben Cichanowicz and finding the back of the net to open the game to a one-goal lead. Green picked up an assist minutes later, when his pass to J.J. Jemison was fired into the back of the net.

The two switched roles in the final 10 minutes of the half as Jemison found Green in the box. Green converted again and picked up his second goal of the match, and gave the Yellow Jackets a 3-0 halftime lead.

“The best thing is that we were playing our style of ball,” said Dapprich. “We played a more controlled game, and played more on the ground. That allowed our guys to be able to make plays, and get some more dangerous opportunities.”

The Wildcats were able to get on the board first in the second half as Seth Addey slipped past the defense, picked up the loose ball, and found the back of the net to pull Newark back within a pair.

Addey’s goal seemed to awaken a Mount Vernon team that had backed off the pressure with the three-goal lead. Cichanowicz led the charge as he picked up a goal of his own with 24 minutes left in the game. He added another goal with eight minutes left to finish off the Yellow Jacket victory.

“The best thing is that we were able to make adjustments, and then convert on them,” said Dapprich. “We played really well as a team, and that’s really important. The defense really picked it up as well, and were a large part of the success of our attack. It was just a solid game all around.”

Mount Vernon is now left with three games on its schedule, all which present a challenge, but also an opportunity.

“I actually gave the kids the weekend off. They deserved it with the way that they played, and I want them to get their legs back under them,” said Dapprich. “Then we want to come back Monday and get ready for Pickerington Central. They’re a tough team and are difficult to play at home. It will be a tough challenge.

“After that we head to Dublin Jerome on Thursday, and then wrap up the regular season a week from Saturday. I like the way that we’ve been playing, and hopefully we can use this game to propel us through the rest of the season.”