Defense paces Wildcat soccer in perfect week

The Louisburg boys soccer team continued their strong start to the season with a pair of 1-0 victories last week, shutting out both Eudora and Lansing behind a strong defense and timely goals.

The Wildcats capped off their perfect week on Thursday at home, edging out Eudora thanks to a first half goal that proved to be the game winner. Midway through the half, defender Wyatt Guetterman launched a long throw-in, where Tanner LaBrie was perfectly positioned to slot the ball into the net for the game’s lone goal.

It also gave the Wildcats some revenge after they fell to the Cardinals the last two seasons and it kept them undefeated in Frontier League play.

“That win was huge for us,” Louisburg coach Bobby Bovaird said. “Eudora has beaten us the past two seasons, so to come out on top in a tight Frontier League battle was a big step forward for the guys. What stood out to me was the trust and leadership the guys showed. This season, we’ve talked about sharpening one another through unity, and you could see that on the field.”

Louisburg’s defense took care of the rest, limiting the Cardinals to just two shots on target. The back line of Conner Marsh, Ryan Barberich, Grant Cannon, and Guetterman held strong, with key contributions off the bench from Brayden Stringfield and Wyatt Tharp. Senior goalkeeper Evan Moreland recorded his second clean sheet of the week and continues to be a steady presence in net.

The Wildcats (4-1-1) had one scary moment in the first half where the Cardinals had an apparent open net and took a shot. However, Tharp read the play and knocked the ball out at the last second to preserve the lead.

“Our defense has been outstanding,” Bovaird said. “We’ve had two straight clean sheets, and that comes from more than just the goalkeeper — it’s the whole group buying into the press, staying connected through communication, and just flat-out being tough as nails. Evan made some key saves, and our back line of Conner, Ryan, Grant, and Wyatt has been rock solid. Conner and Ryan especially have stepped into starting roles this year after being reserves last season, and they’ve really risen to the challenge. We’ve limited both Lansing and Eudora to very few shots on goal, which shows the discipline and toughness of our defensive unit.”

Earlier in the week, the Wildcats traveled to Lansing on Sept. 16 and returned home with another 1-0 victory. Sophomore Parker Powers notched his first varsity goal off a long pass from Owen Marsh midway through the second half. The defense again proved dominant, holding Lansing to just three shots on goal.

“Definitely a great feeling,” Bovaird said. “Lansing is always a tough team to play, and they had more possession of the ball than we did, but our guys showed real physical and mental toughness. We pressed well, created chances in transition, and capitalized when Parker Powers scored his first varsity goal off a great sequence starting with Grant Cannon’s interception. Then our defense and Evan closed it out. We’d lost to Lansing the past two seasons, so to go there and grind out a 1-0 win showed how much this team has grown.”

The Wildcats will look to extend their shutout streak when they host Spring Hill this Thursday and stay atop the league standings.

“Overall, last week was about proving to ourselves how far we’ve come,” Bovaird said. “In the past two seasons, we were outscored 13-1 by these same two teams, and this year we flipped that to two clean-sheet wins. That speaks to the work these guys have put in and the culture we’re building together. Going 2-0 in the league to start is huge, but we know it’s just the beginning — we’ve got Spring Hill coming up and it will be a big test.”

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