FORTVILLE — When the clock struck zero and the Mt. Vernon Marauders boys soccer team walked off their home pitch on Thursday, they did so having accomplished something they hadn’t done in years.
With a hard-fought 1-0 win over Pendleton Heights, the Marauders won the Hoosier Heritage Conference title for the first time since 2017 and their first outright title since 2016.
The victory also capped off a perfect 7-0 conference season, something the team hadn’t done since 2016.
“We talked all season about how talented we can be and how talented we can play. One of our assistant coaches [Jarret Whitehouse] was on the 2016 team, so we bring him in as motivation to talk about it. It’s something special,” Mt. Vernon head coach Matt Mayhew said. “This one was a nail-biter, and Pendleton is a team we might see again in the sectional.”
For the Marauders, winning the title this season had even extra meaning behind it.
An automobile accident to junior Shawn Houser over the summer in which he suffered a traumatic brain injury and was in the ICU for 17 days, really put things into perspective for this year’s team according to Mayhew.
It also left the Marauders without one of their top players.
After scoring eight goals last season, Houser was expected to be a one-two punch on the attack with junior Charlie Cole.
While that hasn’t been able to happen, Houser’s recovery has been going well and he’s been a big part of the team’s success in other ways.
“This means a lot because he’s been with us all season. His brother had a middle school game, but they rushed back here so that he could be with us tonight,” Mayhew said. “He’s with us all the time in spirit and when he’s here, he’s always talking to the guys and is another coach at practice. He’ll jump in and coach the guys, so it’s special to have him around.”
At the top of the attack without his junior duo, Cole has been tasked with taking on an even bigger part of the scoring, and he’s done just that.
He was the lone player to find the back of the net Thursday and did so in typical Charlie Cole fashion.
With just over two minutes to go in the first half, he took multiple defenders head-on and with some fancy footwork got around all of them and beat Pendleton Heights goalkeeper Lucas Mayer-Adams to the left.
“Once I got the ball, I knew I could beat them, so I cut across and saw an opening on the left side and was able to beat the goalie,” Cole said.
The goal was his team-leading 13th of the season, with 11 of them coming in conference games.
“That goal was just Charlie being Charlie. He’s a phenomenal player, and his play just speaks for itself,” Mayhew said. “He has been nursing an injury, so we limited his minutes at practice this week and he just came out and did his thing. You always have to count on him for one.”
The goal was just enough for a Mt. Vernon defense that has been strong all season long.
Led by seniors Rylan Vinard, Zane Kaminski and Brock Austel, and junior Brady Webber on the back line, the Marauders held a high-scoring Pendleton Heights offense scoreless.
Just four shots went on net, and each time another senior, Will Keppler, was there to make the save.
“We just have good character kids. You’ve got that when you have 14 seniors that have been here,” Mayhew said. “We’re going to enjoy this one and this year with them as long as we can.”
With four minutes to go, Keppler denied a Pendleton Heights header, and in the closing minutes, the defense cleared back-to-back Arabians corners.
Over the final 15 minutes, the best Pendleton Heights scoring chances came on free kicks from just outside the box, and each time the defensive wall blocked the attempt.
“We were committing a lot of fouls at the top of the box, which is something that we don’t normally do. I don’t know why we decided to start doing it tonight, so it was a bend don’t break philosophy,” Mayhew said. “Rylan heads a great defensive line for us back there.”
Vinard, a senior committed to play football at Indiana State University, has been a key part of the team since his freshman season, and for him, standing atop the conference has been a long time coming.
“I’ve wanted this for the last four years. I’m glad we could put it all together my senior year,” Vinard said. “I’ve got a great group of guys I get to play with, so I couldn’t be happier.”
The Marauders have two games left to close out the regular season before they turn their focus to the postseason. They play at Ben Davis Tuesday and host Lawrence Central on Thursday.
“It’s been so long, so this title means everything to us,” Cole said. “It’s going to help push us forward into the sectional because now we feel like we can beat anyone. It’s an amazing feeling.”
