SYRACUSE - The Wawasee High School boys soccer team has seen leads slip away this season. That wasn't the case Tuesday.
Hosting the Huntington North Vikings (3-3-1) on a rainy afternoon, the Warriors got a first-half goal from junior Austin Benzinger, and the defense made it hold up for a 1-0 victory."We really focused on being strong and disciplined," Wawasee coach Peter Lucht said. "We practiced those things yesterday, and those are things we really wanted to carry through."
The win improves Wawasee to 4-3 on the year, but two of those losses came after the Warriors held an early lead. Both of the losses that slipped away came via 2-1 scores, with one coming against Westview, a team the Warriors lost to 7-0 last year, and the Concord Minutemen, an always tough Northern Lakes Conference opponent.
"We've been able to get up on teams in the first half, we just need the mental toughness to really see out the games," Lucht said.
Against the Vikings, that maturity showed.
Just as the Huntington North bus pulled into the Wawasee High School parking lot, a downpour commenced. After about 10 minutes of heavy rain, the precipitation let up, allowing the game to be played.
"I wasn't too worried about it because of the lack of lightning," Lucht said about getting the game in. "Plus, usually, when people make the trip, and they've arrived, we'll go ahead and play."
After some slipping and sliding, Wawasee controlled the play and had a golden opportunity to get onto the scoreboard when junior Cody Blunk drew a penalty inside the Huntington North box at the 33:19 mark in the first half.
Wawasee sophomore Drew Sylvester took the penalty kick, but Vikings junior goalkeeper Kyle Williams made a diving stop to his left, preserving the 0-0 contest.
Seventeen minutes later, Williams wasn't as fortunate when Benzinger's free kick went just over his fingertips into the upper left-hand corner of the net.
"It was a gorgeous free kick," Lucht said. "He's done real well on free kicks. There's been four free kicks from him - whether it's delivered from the back or it's him taking it himself - that have resulted in goals. So, he's been very consistent."
The 1-0 final score really did dictate the even matchup, as Huntington North had just one more shot on goal than Wawasee (7-6), while Warriors sophomore goalkeeper Andre Champoux had two more saves than Williams (7-5) and Wawasee recorded one more corner kick (3-2).
Each team also had one yellow card, and that type of physical play will fit right in as Wawasee resumes its NLC schedule Thursday at NorthWood.
"It's a solid conference," Lucht said. "What we really need to concentrate on is a slogan the (Indianapolis) Colts used a last year or the year before, basically about not having any excuses and doing what we do. The boys this year are more intelligent. We may have lost some athleticism from last year, but we gained some team cohesion and a better understanding of the game."
The loss to the Minutemen has left the Warriors with an 0-1 NLC record, but Lucht only foresees his guys getting better.
"I'm not guaranteeing and NLC championship, but we will have success if we do what we do," he said. "Success can be beating, tying, playing teams closer than we have in the past. Success is measured in different ways, but we will have success to be a better team."
WAWASEE 1, H. NORTH 0
W - Austin Benzinger (free kick) 26th min.
Shots on Goal - Wawasee 6, Huntington North 7; Saves - Wawasee (Andre Champoux) 7, Huntington North (Kyle Williams) 5; Corner Kicks - Wawasee 3, Huntington North 2; Yellow Cards - Robert Smith (W), Sam Schaffter (HN); Records: Wawasee 4-3, Huntington North 3-3-1
