No. 1 East
tops rival Southwest soccer team
BY BRENT C.
WAGNER / Lincoln Journal Star
Tuesday, Mar 20,
2007 - 10:49:24 pm CDT
This was not
your typical early-season soccer game.
Sure, the
Lincoln East and Lincoln Southwest boys teams are still working off some rust,
and the blustery conditions were on par with March soccer in Nebraska.
But Eastıs 2-0
victory against Southwest at the Abbott Soccer Complex had a little extra fuel
for being just each teamıs second game of the season.
Indeed, this was
a city rivalry. The Spartans with their two-straight state championships, and
the still-budding Silver Hawks trying to get one of those wins that gives you a
reputation.
Add in a bunch
of guys that have played plenty of club soccer together — some as
teammates, and others as life-long rivals — and you had a dandy for the
first big city soccer game of the season.
In the end,
Class A No. 1 East (2-0) was too much.
Taylor Stacy
scored Eastıs first goal late in the first half. Sixth-ranked Southwest (1-1)
outplayed East for part of the second half, before the Spartans finished things
off with A.J. Dingledineıs goal with about two minutes remaining.
Winning
goaltender Anthony Reichwaldt says there was no denying that it was more than
the average game.
³I try to bring
the same emotion to every game, but this game definitely means a little more
than the others,² Reichwaldt said. ³When we knock one in, it gets emotional,
and the adrenaline is pumping pretty good.
³Since I play
club with some of those guys itıs a good way to nudge them a little bit, and
get a little rivalry going.²
Southwest had itıs
chances in the second half, but came up short each time. Reichwaldt made a
diving stop midway through the second half. Later, Southwest had a shot sail
inches wide following a flurry in the box.
³Anthony made
some really nice saves when he had to,² said East coach Jeff Hoham, following
Reichwaldtıs second shutout in as many outings.
Eastıs entire
defense was good. Among that bunch, the coach said Joe Baker and Justin Burns
stood out.
³We believe itıs
going to be tough to score on us no matter who we play,² Hoham said.
The Spartans
paired some timely scoring with their solid defense. Stacy chipped his score in
following a little trickery on a free kick.
Dingledine put
things out of reach with his goal in the 78th minute. It was his fourth goal in
two games.
³Our last goal
was indicative of the game for both teams,² Hoham said. ³We both had some
chances with our strikers being able to break clear.
³AJ just happens
to be one of the best finishers in the state, so give him credit.²