Triad entered their match Saturday with Collinsville a perfect 7-0. The Kahoks had been shut out in their previous two matches by a combined 7-0 score. To anyone watching the match, it would seem the opposite was true.
Collinsville freshman goalkeeper Brett Niedzsiecki points to an unchecked Triad defender in the Kahoks’ 3-0 win / Photo by Roger Starkey
From the time senior forward Alex Lamoreaux’s header bounced off the back of the net nine minutes into the match, it was obvious that Collinsville (3-3-1 overall, 1-1 Southwestern Conference) was in charge. Kahoks Head Coach Myles Hensler said it was one of the best matches his side played this year.
“I challenged my players to come out today and outmatch them, and they did that,” Hensler said. “So I’m very proud of them.”
Triad (7-1 overall, 1-0 Mississippi Valley Conference) is a blue-collar team that works hard and puts pressure on their opponents, Hensler said. “We wanted to set the tone, we wanted to play physical,” Hensler said.
The Knights style of play and the Kahoks’ willingness to match them shove for shove led to a game filled with yellow cards. At times, it appeared one of the officials could not wait to pull a yellow card from his pocket and proudly hold it over the head of a Collinsville player.
“It was kind of one sided, we got more yellow cards then they did, if they got any,” Hensler said.
Not satisfied to only show his card to the players, the official also tagged Hensler with a yellow card after junior midfielder Grant Bauer was handed a card while crouching over the ball with two Triad players pushing at his back.
“I was continuously discussing the issue with him,” Hensler said. “When Grant’s on the ground, guys are pushing him down on top of the ball and they call it dangerous. Well, my only concern was, OK, first of all he got shoved down into the ground and that’s how he got there,” Hensler said. “I repeatedly kept saying that to one of the refs, and obviously I didn’t stop talking, so he gave me the yellow card.”
The Kahoks did not allow the prolific penalty assessments affect their game. Nine minutes after Lamoreaux opened the scoring, senior midfielder Cody Sanftleben beat freshman goalkeeper John McGee on a cracking goal from 20 yards.
Sanftleben dribbled into the penalty box and around a defender, before sidestepping another defending and unleashing a bomb to give the Kahoks a 2-0 lead.
Collinsville ended the scoring with 26 minutes, 48 seconds remaining when Sanftleben hit a cross that was too high for Bauer, who was wide open in front of the net, but the perfect height for sophomore midfielder Jared Hamman who soared in to score on a header.
Freshman Brett Niedzwiecki was solid in goal. He made several diving saves on the way to his second shutout of the season.
The Kahoks return home to play 6:45 matches Tuesday and Wednesday. Edwardsville visits Kahok Stadium Tuesday and Chaminade comes across the river Wednesday.
Kahoksports.com will broadcast both matches.
