For just the second time in the past 15 years and the first since 2016, Apollo boys’ soccer opened the season with a district matchup Thursday night. The Eagles (1-0, 1-0) managed a victory over Owensboro (1-1, 0-1) at Shifley Park in a back-and-forth defensive battle that ended 1-0.
It was Elbert Moo’s 25-yard free kick with just under 22 minutes remaining in the first half that lifted Apollo to the win.
An equalizing goal nearly came at the foot of junior Aiden Fregoe with 10 minutes to go in the first half, as the Owensboro forward sent a cross along the 6-yard box that was just out of the reach of his teammates.
To close out the first half, Harrison Bowman nearly doubled the Apollo lead as a sprinting run created space on the right flank but a shot from outside the box clanked off the near post.
After the break, it was more back-and-forth action, as neither team was able to string a run of passes together. With 18 minutes to play, senior Owensboro goalkeeper Logan Lanham made a key save. A deflection sent a cross wide of the goal moments earlier, then Lanham’s outstretched effort made sure a touch from Houston Collins didn’t make it to the net.
Though a second goal never came, Apollo head coach Ryan Poirier was thrilled with the effort from his team following the victory, citing cleaner passing and solid communication as keys to killing the game off in the second half.
“A win is a win, especially against a district opponent in the first game of the season,” Poirier said. “It was really good to eke out a win and show some fight. I think our kids see that you have to show up every night and play hard. I thought everyone was really unselfish in the game and that’s how we want to play. We have a great group of kids, with 27 players on varsity, and I’m excited to see how the season plays out.”
Of the 27 players to outfit a varsity jersey for the Eagles, 23 of them are upperclassmen. In contrast, the Owensboro roster is composed of 19 players with just 10 upperclassmen. This was a point of conversation in the Red Devil team talk following the loss, something head coach Ryan Haley hopes speaks well of the future for his squad.
“We’re young,” Haley said. “Our average age is 16 and we have a 14-year old out there starting. I think we played a little narrow and put the ball in the air too much, but going forward we know we can play smarter to allow us not to have to play harder. I was happy with the way our effort was, but there is disappointment in losing off of a free kick. At the end of the day, though, I think our boys are walking out of here believing they can play this team a little tighter next time we match up with them.”
Apollo next matches up with Ohio County at home at 7 p.m. Tuesday, while Owensboro is scheduled for a 10 a.m. kickoff in North Hardin Saturday.
