With just two regular season games left to play, the Mound Westonka boys soccer team has amassed eight wins, two losses and three ties.  The overall record would have looked a lot less impressive, however, if the team had not fought through with two close wins in the last week. 

First up was a visit to Holy Family Catholic School in Victoria on September 30.  The White Hawks have not been able to get a win against their local rival in the last five tries, and the start of the game did not indicate the streak was about to end. After just 5 minutes, Holy Family surged forward and took the lead after a defensive slip caused an opening.

After the initial shock, the White Hawks found their footing and started to string together some good passing sequences.  They received their reward at the 17-minute mark when sophomore Brett Bartkowicz scored on an assist from senior captain Michael Doshan. Just a couple of minutes later, Mound Westonka took the lead when senior Alec Hruby ran through on a long ball from Bartkowicz and was able to flick the ball over the goalie, who had run out to clear.  

Westonka continued to create good chances, and the game looked sealed up at the 55-minute mark, when Bartkowicz scored his second goal on a penalty kick and the White Hawks moved to a 3-1 lead. The last 20 minutes swung decidedly the way of the home team when Bartkowicz received a red card for a poorly timed challenge, and Westonka had to finish the game with one less player on the field. Holy Family pushed hard and started creating lots of chances. Westonka’s defense stayed strong, especially senior goalie Cooper Kantola, who had an excellent game, and while the Fire did get one goal back, the White Hawks ran out 3-2 winners on the night.  

The second game of the week was a visit to St Anthony Village on October 4.  Doshan gave Mound Westonka the lead after just two minutes when he blasted in from a well-designed short free kick. Goals continued to look likely after that, especially when senior captain Manu Jordan ripped a great shot off the cross bar at the 16-minute mark.  

Somewhat surprisingly, the next goal came from the home team just after half time. Westonka kept working hard, though, and got their reward in the 53rd minute when Doshan chased down the St. Anthony goalie on a long through ball. The goalie unwisely tried to keep the ball on the ground and dribble out. Doshan’s hustle forced a mis-play allowing Hruby a free shot to an open net. Time ran out with the White Hawks maintaining the 2-1 lead.

MWHS Boys Soccer Final Scores: Holy Family 2 – Mound Westonka 3; St Anthony Village 1 - Mound Westonka 2