By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – New Albany made the most of a two-shot foul.
On the basketball court, that’s a common occurrence. On the soccer pitch, that’s a different story. The Bulldogs capitalized on a second-chance penalty shot while topping Bedford North Lawrence 4-1 on Thursday.
New Albany forward Makreo Hart, fouled in the penalty box early in the first half, had already scored once when he lined up for a one-on-one showdown with BNL goalie Owen Williams. Hart’s first strike missed wide left, but he was granted another opportunity when Williams (hoping to fake out the shooter) moved off the goal line prior to the kick. Hart didn’t miss again after that violation, and the two-goal cushion was crucial for the Bulldogs (3-3 overall) as they won their Hoosiers Hills Conference opener.
“It set the tone for the whole team,” New Albany coach Jamie Ochsner said.
Hart, dangerous and lethal at the top of the attack as he roamed freely across the field, got New Albany started with a rebound goal at 33:52. He followed that with the do-over penalty kick at 29:11.
The Stars (2-4, 0-2 in the league) came back with their lone goal as Saeban Arce found the net at 17:04. But the Bulldogs struck again just before the half, when Jayden Martinez knocked in another rebound shot at 5:29 to create more space.
“We had the initial save, we just need to do a better job of wrapping that up, the defense closing down and clearing it out,” BNL coach Ryan Otis said. “That put us in a hole, but we had good effort all night.”
While BNL struggled to generate scoring in the second half, New Albany’s Joe Lutgens added some insurance with a shot at 9:54 of the second half. Hart just missed a hat trick when his long-range rocket cracked off the right post with 3:50 left.
“Makreo is great player with good ball skills,” Ochsner said. “A lot of teams key on him, and he doesn’t have the ability to have the space sometimes. But it opened up for him, and he took advantage of it. He does a great job of pressuring the ball.”
The Bulldogs were quite adept at passing and possession, especially in tight traffic.
”Their passing was pretty good,” Otis said. “Even more, it was their speed and movement. When they’re moving that much, it makes the passing that much better because the angles are better.”
BNL will travel to Scottsburg on Saturday.
