Outlaws celebrate soccer win at Cottage Grove

The boys soccer team celebrated a huge 2-0 victory at Cottage Grove on Thursday, September 27. It had been eight long years since the Outlaws had won a soccer game at Cottage Grove, and the victory was sweet.

Sisters scored their first goal of the game at the 35-minute mark. Evan Rickards started it off with a great corner kick to the opposite side of the field to Justin Harrer. Harrer took a hard shot from the top of the 18-yard box which deflected off the keeper's chest, but Keenan O'Hern was right there and tapped it in for the score.

At the half the Outlaws held a slim 1-0 lead.

Four minutes into the second half Sisters punched in their second goal and went on top 2-0. Midfielder Colton Mannhalter booted a long pass to Rickards at the 18-yard box. Rickards dribbled in and passed the ball across the field over to Eli Boettner. Boettner knocked in a perfect shot on the ground and nailed it into the right corner of the net.

The Outlaws dominated play the remainder of the half and walked off the field with the win.

Rickards said, "Coach told us he was very proud of us. Then he told us to relish the victory and take the next day off. It was awesome!"

Boettner added, "It was a big win for our whole team and for Coach. We played the hardest we have all season. We controlled the middle of the field the entire game and we kept pressure on them the whole time."

Coach Rob Jensen told The Nugget it was the first time in his coaching career the Outlaws had won at Cottage Grove.

"The team played great, out-shot Cottage Grove 20-4 and controlled possession the majority of the time," stated Jensen. "Jake (McAllister) drew a lot of attention from the Cottage Grove defense and he was able to play the ball to other teammates to create scoring opportunities. Colton (Mannhalter) also had a solid game at midfield and won a lot of balls for us."

Earlier in the week, at home on Tuesday, the Outlaws defeated Junction City 3-1.

Junction City scored the first goal of the contest with just three minutes off the clock. An awkward touch led to an unmarked defender and the Tigers capitalized on the opportunity and scored.

Sisters out-shot Junction City 20-4 in the first half but weren't able to get the ball in the goal. At the half the Tigers held a 1-0 lead. Drew Corrigan had a great save for the Outlaws at the 25-minute mark when he deflected a shot out of bounds and held Junction City to a one-point lead.

Jensen made some changes in the second half and shifted players to fill some gaps in the middle of the field.

Jake McAllister scored five minutes into the second half off a through-ball from Gabe Rietmann. Eight minutes later McAllister scored again. Jardon Weems played a ball up the right side and Jake rounded the corner and beat the keeper for the goal.

Sisters' last goal came at the 60-minute mark. Nicky Blumm assisted Evan Rickards for a perfectly placed shot past the keeper.

The Outlaws dominated possession and held off the Tigers with a 3-1 lead until the final whistle sounded. Sisters finished with 41 shots on goal compared to Junction City, who was limited to four.

"In the second half Junction City didn't even get a shot at the keeper, and they were unable to possess the ball in our defensive third," stated Jensen.

Boettner told The Nugget how he felt about this year's squad.

"We really play as one unit instead of as individuals," stated Boettner. "We've got great chemistry and we're working hard to win the league championship."

The Outlaws are 3-0 in league and 7-1 overall.

Sisters will play at home against Sweet Home on Thursday, October 4, and the following Tuesday, October 9, the Outlaws will travel to Elmira.