MWHS boys soccer notched two hard fought wins this last week against tricky teams that have always provided a challenge.

First up was a visit from Mankato East on Tuesday August 31st.  The first half was very tight and neither team could get a goal, although Senior Mound Goalkeeper, Cooper Kantola, had a lot to do with that as he notched 5 saves in the half.

Mound started the 2nd half well, with Junior Dimitri Anderson getting on the end of an excellent sequence of passes.  His strong shot was denied by an equally good save from the Mankato goalie.  Senior Alec Hruby also had a shot saved a few minutes later.

The next best chance fell for Mound in the 66th minute after some creative hold up play by Junior Jessiah Hunter.  This set up Sophomore Sam Holmberg, who also showed great patience before unleashing a shot into the top left corner which drew an unbelievable fingertip save from the excellent Mankato goalkeeper.

A goal felt like it was coming, and it finally did in the 70th minute.  Hruby’s pace finally broke the game open after he got around the last defender and was brought down in the box for a penalty kick.  Senior Captain Michael Doshan coolly slotted home the kick, which ended up being the only goal of the game. 

The second game was away from home on a wet and fast Monticello High School turf field on Thursday September 2nd.  Monticello were initially the team more likely to score as they seemed better suited for the conditions and utilized very speedy forward players to create half chances.  Mound grew into the game though and were soon dominating the midfield play and controlling the game.

The breakthrough came in the 25th minute on a Holmberg free kick. The ball looped in over the top of the defense and Senior Captain Owen Beckley rushed onto it to slot the ball home.

Another Holmberg free kick resulted in Mound’s second goal in the 60th minute - this time via a direct shot that curved around the wall.

With a two goal cushion it was time for the defense to stiffen up and see the game home.  Defenders, Senior Drew Swanson, and juniors Payton Kasper and Dylan Mather with the help of Goalie Cooper Kantola, successfully maintained their now three game shutout streak.

Final Scores: Mound Westonka 1 – Mankato East 0; Monticello 0 – Mound Westonka 2