Visiting Des Moines Hoover outlasted both Perry soccer teams in non-conference play at Dewey Field Friday, posting a 1-0 win in the girls game before claiming a win (1-0) on penalty kicks in the boys contest.
The Huskies won the opener with a goal in the 17th minute, with neither team able to find the back of the net in the remaining 63 minutes of play.
Perry (0-3) played well defensively despite surrendering the only score of the game. Goalie Ampara Menendez made eight saves while defenders Erica Tenold, Selena Garcia, Olivia Herrera helped turn aside several Husky scoring attempts, especially in the second half.
The Jayette offense struggled to mount a sustained attack, an area head coach Gilmar Guerra said must improve.
“We need to work on putting passes together and keeping possession of the ball,” he said. “We are passing the ball to where people are, instead of ahead of them and where they are going to be and that is causing us to lose possession and I was not happy with seeing a lot of jogging instead of running to the ball.”
“Part of the problem is we are so inexperienced,” he added. “Only four starters are back from last year, and the offense always takes longer to play together than the defense. We will be working on our communication and passing in practices.”
The third-ranked Bluejays (4-2) found their speed — usually an advantage for Perry — matched by an athletic Hoover squad. Neither team moved the scoreboard after 80 minutes of regulation, with two 10-minute overtime periods also scoreless.
That set up a penalty kick situation, with each team taking five shots. Alvaro Soto, Ivan Rodriguez, Jaime Diaz and Saul Tellez scored for Perry, but Hoover answered each Bluejay score with a successful boot of their own. A Perry miss on the fifth try opened the door, with Hoover hitting the back of the nylon to score the upset.
The Jayettes will host Des Moines North Monday before playing the Newton Tournament April 18, with the Bluejays off until a visit from Grinnell April 17. Home matches start with junior varsity contests at 5:30 p.m. with the varsity tilt to follow.
