A hat trick and a late goal from sophomore Saang Thang helped push the Red Devils past the Aces to earn the 3-2 road victory.
After a slow start to the game, Owensboro Catholic was the first team to put one on the board thanks to senior Aaron Self and a little luck.
The Aces drew a free kick, which Self lined up and sent into the box. The pass missed the intended target for Owensboro Catholic, but Red Devils’ senior keeper Logan Lanham had misplayed the ball and it bounced over him and into the net for the goal.
This gave the Aces a 1-0 lead in the 16th minute. Senior keeper Alex Gonzo then entered for Owensboro and they quickly went on the attack looking to get the equalizer.
They created a number of chances for themselves, with junior Aiden Frego nearly scoring in the 21st minute. Despite missing some opportunities, the Red Devils kept pushing and came through thanks to some chaos in the box minutes later.
A cross was sent into the box and sailed a little far, but senior Connor Rhoads was there to clean it up and he found Thang right in front of the goal.
Thang tapped it in, tying things up at 1-1 in the 27 minute. This was a turning point, as Owensboro began to control possession for the rest of the half.
The Red Devils nearly found the back of the net just before the half, but junior Parker Jones made a crucial save and kept the game at 1-1.
Head Coach Ryan Haley was thrilled with his team’s play in the first half, despite going into halftime tied at one apiece.
“I thought we really came out with a great tempo,” Haley said. “We were keeping it on the ground. We had 17 shots in the first half… We moved the ball well on the carpet. We hit the flanks and were able to get around.”
Their aggression offensively didn’t deter Jones though, as he made another big save shortly into the second half, keeping things at 1-1 in the 50th minute.
This turned into offense for the Aces, as sophomore Brody Martin received the ball on the left side of the pitch and floated the ball over Gonzo into the right side of the net.
Haley said that Owensboro Catholic’s offense has a lot of firepower on the left side of the pitch, something that they tried to gameplan for despite the risk of giving up a goal or two to have a stronger offense.
“I think from the left flank they’re very strong,” Haley said. “Brody Martin is a really good player. He’s very shifty… That was their big dynamic. We kind of played light on the defensive end and we had more guys at the top of the pitch most of the game. So that’s always a risk that you run when you run something like that.”
Martin’s goal gave Owensboro Catholic a 2-1 lead in the 52nd minute, but that didn’t last long. Four minutes later, sophomore Peter Saang gave a nice ball to Thang who took a touch in the box and scored his second goal of the game to tie it at two apiece.
Both teams traded runs for much of the second half, but it was Thang who struck again for the difference maker late.
Thang received the ball just outside the box and diced up multiple defenders, before scoring with his left foot for the hat trick and giving Owensboro a 3-2 lead in the 72nd minute.
“On the last third goal, he kind of will-powered that goal,” Haley said. “He took on a guy, there was pressure cover. He beat the pressure, he beat the cover and he was able to get around and get a shot.”
Owensboro Catholic got one last chance with a free kick in the final minute of play, but the pass went past the right side of the goal as the buzzer sounded to give Owensboro the 3-2 victory.
Haley said the Aces didn’t make it easy for them, but he was pleased with his team’s effort throughout the entirety of the game.
“I think Catholic fought very hard,” Haley said. “I thought their kids really brought a fight. We knew it was gonna be, but I’m super proud of my guys. I think every one of them played as good as they could’ve.”
Owensboro Catholic Head Coach Andy Donohoe knows they missed some opportunities early on, but said that they executed their gameplan well and just fell short.
“We had chances to score some other ones in the game,” Donohoe said. “We [had it] set up to make it frantic and high-energy and fast-paced back in the first half. I thought we got so much done [offensively] that they had to change keepers to try and counter some of the stuff we were doing. Some tired mistakes I think led to the third goal, but you can’t fault them out there [when they’re] giving so much energy.”
Thang’s hat trick was the difference offensively, as he proved he can take defenders one-on-one while also working to score in the flow of the offense.
“You’ll be hearing his name a lot more in the future,” Haley said. “He’s only 15. He’s just a sophomore. I anticipate him to be in the mix as an All-District type player for years to come.”
Despite the tough loss, the Aces don’t plan to dwell on it and will focus on daily improvement with big games ahead.
“You keep going,” Donohoe said. “You feel bad about it tonight and you get on with it tomorrow and get a little bit better and learn from the mistakes. We’ve got a big game on Saturday in the All A. We want to try and qualify and give ourselves our chance at some silverware and win that… We’ll try and recover tomorrow and get going again Saturday.”
Owensboro plans on getting some much needed rest before they take on Central Hardin at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, while the Aces will hit the road to take on Russellville at 11 a.m. on Saturday.
