A pair of teams expected to be in the mix for the Second Region title got off to different starts in their season opener on Monday.
The Madisonville Maroons scored three times in nine minutes in the first half and handed University Heights Academy a 5-1 defeat at Donley Field.
The defending region champion Maroons controlled possession from the start with three good looks in the first 10 minutes of the match.
Dom Blanford got the scoring going for the Maroons when he took a pass from Eli Redpath to find the net in the 13th minute.
Redpath then found the net twice over the next three minutes. The first came from a pass from Dru Lile. The second was off a corner kick from Kyle Yates that Redpath directed in.
“One of my key points was to come out from the start strong, get a couple goals if we can, and not give up any goals,” said Maroons coach Christakis Agisilaou. “So to come out early and score three in the first 15-20 minutes was good.”
Madisonville outshot the Blazers 8-2 in the first half with UHA getting a good look on a breakaway before the end of the half. However, the shot finished wide.
Down 3-0 at the half, UHA switched formations in the second half to control the midfield more. The result was five shots in the second half.
“We moved some more people into the midfield after they kind of caught us early and took the game over,” UHA coach Josh Nichols said. “But in the second half, the first 15 minutes was as good as we looked all year.”
Madisonville took a 4-1 lead 13 minutes into the second half when UHA goalie Eli Finch made a great save off a shot from Blanford. However, Nelson Menjivar-Villalobos cleaned up in front for the Maroon goal.
UHA got on the board when Lincoln Hauret was fouled in the box and nailed the penalty kick in the 55th minute.
A minute later, Madisonville was awarded a penalty kick off a foul in the box but Finch made a diving save to keep the Maroons off the board.
Madisonville closed out the scoring when Menjivar-Villalobos fed Maddox Schneider for the goal.
Madisonville ended up holding a 13-7 advantage in shots. Both Finch and Madisonville goalie Hunter Gamblin made four saves.
For Nichols, the slow start by the Blazers has been a recurring problem that was magnified on Monday.
“We’ve faced this problem all summer with sluggish first halves, not playing the way we’re capable of, then coming out after halftime and looking like a different team. The intensity wasn’t there in the first half, we weren’t getting close enough to the ball, and there was too much space in the midfield.”
Meanwhile, Madisonville was playing without Region Player of the Year Logan Terry, who received a red card at the Bluegrass State Games. Despite that, the Maroons picked up their fifth straight win over UHA dating back to 2020.
“There are some things we can work on, but they are minor things,” Agisilaou said. “But the little details matter, especially in my program. Just little things can go a long way. And UHA, they’ve improved a lot this year. They gave us a good challenge. We’ve got two days to prepare for Caldwell County and improve on those changes.”
For UHA, the Blazers host Paducah Tilghman on Thursday.
