Corbett boys soccer’s early goal not enough in loss to No. 5 Valley Catholic

Corbett boys soccer struck first against one of the best teams in the state.

Eight minutes into the match against visiting No. 5 Valley Catholic, Cardinals junior Rowan Wilburn shook off a defender and sprinted down the right side of the pitch. He got deep, then fired a ball across the goal. Luckily speedy senior Jayson Minsker was perfectly positioned, sliding for the goal.

“This game is winnable,” Minsker said. “Anyone could have scored that, Rowan played a beautiful ball.”

But minutes later disaster struck. On a direct ball, Minsker collided with Valiants junior goalie Kasen Turley as they both stuck a foot out to kick it. Minsker took the brunt of the damage, hyperextending his knee. Bruising, swelling and an abundance of caution kept him out of the rest of the contest.

“Our senior put his whole body on the line for our team,” said Corbett head coach Seth Payton.

The result was an uncorking of energy from the Valiants, and a whole heap of goals.

Valley Catholic beat No. 10 Corbett 6-2 Tuesday evening, Oct. 8, during “Pink Night,” supporting breast cancer awareness with t-shirt sales, a 50/50 raffle and other prizes.

“Can’t be mad at you guys for not fighting hard, you gave it your all,” said Payton, who challenged his team not to be discouraged by the score.

For the Valiant (8-2, 4-1 League), sophomore forward Max Winters had a hat trick and also notched two assists; senior midfielder Daniel Paz had a brace; junior midfielder Nelson Reinikka scored a goal; and junior defender Boston Long had a beautiful assist that wowed his coaches and teammates on the bench.

The final goal of the first half left Corbett feeling a bit hard done. During the run of play, the official was hit by a Valiant pass. He blew the play dead, and gave the visitors a drop ball. The Cardinals coaches thought it was too quick — the fast restart allowed Paz to launch a shot for a 45-yard score, making it 3-1 Valley Catholic at the break.

“We are still in this, start fighting, stop complaining,” Payton said. “Learn from mistakes, get back on defense, and don’t let your heads drop.”

Corbett (6-4, 1-4 SD1) would get one back in the second half.

On a direct ball up the left side of the pitch, sophomore Jacob Collins was fouled in the box by an overzealous tackle. Junior Quinn Fletcher stepped up, took a moment at the spot, then fired it low for the penalty kick goal.