Perry defeated Ballard, 5-2, in Raccoon River Conference boys soccer at Dewey Field Tuesday, but the score was not indicative of the tense nature of much of the game, as a resolute Bomber squad refused to bow to the Bluejays.
“Our kids played well enough to win, but I would definitely like to see us play with a bit more of an edge — we tend to be sloppy at times and don’t seem to be very focused,” Perry head coach Gary Overla said. “We probably missed a half-dozen opportunities on goal, so we left quite a few out on the field, and we gave up some pretty easy opportunities also.”
“If we are truly trying to be a team that wants to compete at the state tournament level we really need to clean that up,” Overla said of the blown opportunities. “You simply don’t get high numbers of scoring chances against quality teams and when you squander chances you hinder yourself. We definitely need to clean that up.”
Brenden Vincent scored in the 23rd minute off a Matt Stewart assist to give the guests a 1-0 lead.
Perry had looked somewhat lackadaisical through the first 30 minutes, missing, as Overla noted, several chances to put the ball in the net.
Jesus Rodriguez scored on a ripping shot from 25 yards out in the 32nd minute to tie the game and energize the hosts. German Alvarenga made it 2-1 in the 37th minute by converting off an on-target pass from Ever Tobar and it appeared Perry was on their way. The goals were the 14th of the year for Rodriguez and the fifth for Alvarenga.
That belief was enchanced 70 seconds later when Jehovany Rivera unloaded a cannonading blast from perhaps 35 yards out. Rivera was just to the right of the post and in the clear when he sent a screaming bender that hooked inside the bar and beat a stunned Ballard keeper.
Ballard (4-4, 1-3) took advantage of a misstep by a Perry defender to break free on a charge in the 44th minute, with Wade Stocksleger finding the net off Riley Fleener’s pass to close the gap to 3-2.
The hosts missed a flurry of shots on goal, and received a break when Bluejay keeper Anthony Aragon was able to stop a two-man breakout. Anthony Velasco’s third goal of the season, which came in the 60th minute, created a 4-2 lead, with Moses Tellez adding his third of the year in the 71st minute off assists from Tobar and Rodriguez.
The Bluejay junior varsity had no such trouble finding the net in their game, with Rudy Sarceno scoring 49 seconds into the match for a 1-0 lead. He would add two more goals later in the game to complete the hat trick, with Anthony Macias, Amos Munoz and Tellez also scoring for a 6-0 victory.
Perry hosts traditional rival DC-G Thursday, then faces a Tuesday showdown at ADM Tuesday for what will almost certainly decide the conference championship.
