It was a night when the University Heights Academy Blazers made an emphatic statement. The statement being that the Blazers would be among those teams expected to be a serious contender for the 2nd Region boys soccer championship.
The Blazers got a four goal performance from William Bryan and the Blazer defense put the clamps on Madisonville-North Hopkins, as UHA picked up the 4-0 win Saturday night on Givens Field. The win marked the first time that that Blazers had beaten the Maroons since the 2004 season.
The game had a regional tournament feel, with physical play and intensity both on the pitch and along the sidelines.
While the Maroons controlled the ball for a big chunk of the first half, the Blazer defense led by the play of Riley Simmons, Shayan Kahn, Will Hancock, and goalie Quentin Quarles, turned them away from the net time after time.
UHA got on the board at the 4:00 mark when William Bryan headed in the rebound of a missed shot from Ethan Hale to make it 1-0. Bryan would find the net again at the 27:45 mark when he pushed the ball down the left side of the field. The Maroon goalie came out to try and cut Bryan off, with Bryan beating the goalie by crossing to the right and drilling the shot to make it 2-0.
The Maroons had a couple of opportunities after that on direct kicks from Caden Crowell but could not convert the chances into goals.
William Bryan finished off his first half hat trick at the 35:00 mark when he headed in a pass from a corner kick to move the lead out to 3-0 headed into the half.
For the half, the Blazers were outshot by the Maroons 12, but UHA was the more efficient team with its opportunities.
UHA came out in the second half and took more control of ball possession, and thus found more scoring opportunities. The Blazers had good pressure up front from Bryan, Noah Shouse, Connor Dill, and Elvin Wagner, forcing the Maroons to focus more energy on defensive play in the 2nd half.
In the second half, the Blazers would actually outshoot the Maroons 16-13.
While those shots did not translate into goals, moving the Maroons backwards down the field more in the second half paid dividends, as the Blazers were able to keep Madisonville out of the net.
William Bryan put the final nail in the victory at the 71:40 mark when he drove the ball down the field and beat the Maroon goalie as he came out for the second time of the night to move the lead out to 4-0.
Madisonville had opportunities in the second half with offensive pressure from Dalton Daves, Tate Young, and Kael Knight, but the Maroons just could not find the net behind the Blazer defense.
The win improves UHA to 7-1 on the season, with the Blazers set to host Marshall County on Tuesday.
Madisonville dropped to 7-3-1. The Maroons are schedule to get back to action Thursday when they host Bardstown.
