NEW PALESTINE — An early season matchup showed that Mt. Vernon had what it took to defeat Richmond, but just barely.
The Marauders defeated the Red Devils 2-1 back on Aug. 15, with the deciding goal coming on a penalty kick with four minutes remaining.
In the opening round of the New Palestine Boys Soccer Sectional Tuesday night, the Marauders made sure the rematch was less stressful.
Mt. Vernon defeated the Red Devils 4-0 to advance to today’s semifinal.
“We knew they were athletic and [Richmond] coach Carson [Jones] has done a great job out there. He played for Mt. Vernon back in the day, so it’s neat seeing a former player of mine coaching. He’s done a great job,” Mt. Vernon head coach Matt Mayhew said. “He knows our system well because he played in it and we knew he was going to prepare the guys well. A lot of different things factored into tonight, but we’ve been on a roll lately and have been finding ourselves, and I’m proud of us for doing that again tonight.”
The two teams traded scoring chances in the opening minutes, with Richmond’s best run of the game coming just over three minutes in.
Kelvin Rojas-Contreras beat the Mt. Vernon defense but the shot went wide right.
A few minutes later Mt. Vernon broke the scoreless tie. Charlie Cole beat the Richmond defense and put the shot past goalkeeper Clifton Attis for his first of two goals.
“There were sometimes there in the middle where we strung eight, nine, 10 passes together and waited for that opportunity to join in,” Mayhew said. “I think we did that quite a few times and that helps us settle down and take advantage of our opportunities when they show up.”
The Marauders controlled the remainder of the half and the scoring chances, and with just a few minutes remaining before the break they added to the 1-0 lead.
Nathaniel Bennett kept the ball away from a diving Attis, and found Luke Alka on the cross for the wide-open header and the 2-0 halftime lead.
The Marauders outshot the Red Devils eight to four in the opening half and sent five of their eight shots on goal.
Mt. Vernon’s control over the first 40 minutes carried over into the second half.
Less than five minutes in, Andrew Lynch found Cole breaking towards the net and Cole beat Attis low and to the left for the 3-0 lead.
Later in the half, Colby Smith corralled a pass at the top of the box and found Alka in front of the net for his second goal of the night and the easy tap-in goal to cap off the Mt. Vernon scoring.
The Marauders had multiple chances right in front of the net throughout the remainder of the half to increase the lead, but each time the shot went high, or Attis was there to make the save.
Mt. Vernon took 13 second-half shots and sent 10 shots on net.
While the Marauders offense tacked on goals, the Mt. Vernon defense limited the Richmond offense.
The Red Devils attempted five second-half shots, and on the night, sent just six shots toward the net.
Mt. Vernon goalkeeper Will Keppler was there each time to make the save.
“We’ve got them talking across that backline and playing for each other. Our defense has done very well,” Mayhew said. “A bunch of smart players back there for us, and we just know we can rely on them back there.”
Mt. Vernon will face East Central today in the second semifinal matchup beginning at 7 p.m.
