NOBLESVILLE–Both teams played tough defense and gave the opponent very few realistic opportunities to score. In Monday’s sectional opener, the difference between Pendleton Heights and Fishers was that the Tigers found a way to cash in while the Arabians could not.
Fishers scored off a free kick early and survived a pair of second half near misses by the Arabians as the Tigers held on for a 2-0 win, eliminating Pendleton Heights in the first round of the sectional.
The Arabian season may have come to an end at 9-8, but coach Kyle Davy had nothing but praise for the way his team played Monday and throughout the season.
“I’m proud of my guys we came out and fought hard tonight,” Davy said. “We gave up two silly goals in the first half, but we still competed and we still had chances, just off the mark a couple times. I’m proud of the way they battled all season.”
Fishers (6-9-2) scored at the 31:04 mark of the first half on a header from Quinn Luckie off a free kick for a 1-0 lead. The Tigers made it 2-0 with 17:59 left until halftime as Drew Govit found the back of the net thanks to a perfect feed from Kai Zimmerman.
From there, the PHHS defense held firm throughout, despite an injury to senior goal keeper Andrew Clemons. With 7:25 left in the first half, junior Ethan Hunt entered the game and pitched a shutout the rest of the way.
“Ethan has played well all season when we’ve put him in,” Davy said. “We’ve got all the faith in the world in him and he’ll be our starting keeper next season.”
The two best chances for the Arabians to score came in the second half.
With 29 minutes remaining, sophomore Brennan Jones made a move in the box and seemed to be in position. But the Tiger keeper got control after an initial bobble to keep Jones at bay.
Just over 10 minutes later, sophomore Kai Moore fired a shot from the edge of the box just over the outstretched hands of the keeper, but the ball glanced harmlessly off the crossbar and out of bounds.
With the careers of 10 special seniors coming to an end, the play of youngsters like Jones and Moore give Davy hope for the future.
“When we first came to Pendleton and started working with the youth, these were the first guys we started coaching,” Davy said. “To be with them, on and off, throughout that time and to see them mature and grow, it’s been a lot of fun to coach them. We’ll probably hurt (next year) most in the defensive end, but we have some sophomores who can step into those roles.”
“The offseason starts today,” he added.
