Central trips up Simpson men’s soccer team
INDIANOLA — Handing Simpson College its first home defeat of the season, the Central College men’s soccer squeaked past the hosts for a 2-1 victory Wednesday night.
The two teams traded goals earlier in the second half before a Matthew West (freshman, midfielder, Pleasant Hill, Southeast Polk HS) goal in the 86th minute netted a victory for the Dutch (12-2-2, 4-1-1 American Rivers Conference).
“I’m so proud of our guys because this a real gut check for us,” coach Garry Laidlaw said. “They are one of the most physical, athletic and direct teams we play all season. They are a dangerous team and I’m pleased with how we handled it.
“We had a nice passing combinations on the flank and the ball fell kindly to Matthew. He composed himself extremely well and slotted it home.”
Central got the scoring started at 52:41 mark with forward Charlie Pritchard’s (freshman, Ankeny) eighth goal of the year. He had an assist from midfielder Jake Dzarnowski (sophomore, Wheaton, Ill., North HS).
“Charlie’s goal was unbelievable,” Laidlaw said. “He had an acute angle and he laced it across the face of the goal to the far post. It’s a difficult shot for keepers to save because of the angle and the height of the ball.”
Simpson’s (14-3-1, 4-2-0 conference) only goal came seconds later at 53:18.
“That was disappointing,” Laidlaw said. “They’ve done it a few times to us in recent years. They always seem to respond well after they concede.”
Overall, Laidlaw was complimentary of his defensive back line, especially junior Joel Collett (Walford, Cedar Rapids Prairie HS).
“Joel was our best player in the first half,” Laidlaw said. “And he needed to be because of what they through that at us. His emergence has been a key to our success.”
. Central will play on the road for the final time this regular season at Coe College in Cedar Rapids on Saturday night at 8 p.m.
“All I know is that they beat Nebraska Wesleyan University and we tied Nebraska Wesleyan,” Laidlaw said. “That’s all we need to know to make sure we are going in focused. We still have work to do. Our team has done a good job remaining focused all year and I expect nothing else on Saturday.”
