This story is sponsored by: Valley Communities Credit Union
By Paul Lecker
MarshfieldAreaSports.com
MARSHFIELD – The Marshfield boys soccer team came into the season with a young squad, knowing it would take some time for them to gel.
A month after the Tigers needed overtime to beat Merrill on the road, Monday’s game may have showed just how far this young team has come.
Marshfield scored early and often, building a four-goal lead in the first 30 minutes on its way to an 8-0 whitewashing of the Bluejays at Griese Park.
“This was a team effort,” Marshfield coach Ron Todyrk said. “Back up in Merrill, we still had individuals out there trying to play. This time, you could see they gelled, worked hard together and played as a unit. Everyone covered each other and shared their responsibilities. They’re getting the idea.”
Alex Kelnhofer got the scoring started, sliding and kicking in a goal off a shot attempt by Matt McCann at the 11:07 mark.
Merrill then became unglued. A red card resulted in Nick Guzowski’s penalty kick goal at 27:25 and the Tigers would tack on three more goals over the next 12 minutes to put the game away early.
Ethan Bell and Al Reeser scored 1 minute apart, and Reeser added another goal at the 39:37 mark to give Marshfield a 5-0 halftime lead.
Merrill had just one shot on goal in the first half as the Tigers defense protected sophomore goalkeeper Trenton Todryk, who was making his first Wisconsin Valley Conference start, replacing an injured Erik Holm.
“We’re moving the ball well,” said senior Colin Telin, who had three assists. “We’re working on our defense, our defense is even stronger now. We’re protecting goalie more and moving the ball around a lot better.”
Ben Riesterer scored on a penalty kick, and Eli Oba and McCann added goals in the second half to provide the final margin.
“It seems like the guys played a lot better today,” Todryk said. “Our possession time was unbelievable. Our defense, they weren’t going to let the Merrill offense past them. They played hard and they were fired up.”
Marshfield plays at D.C. Everest on Tuesday night in a rematch of a game earlier this season that saw the Evergreens score twice late in beat the Tigers 2-1.
It was a loss that started a four-game conference losing streak for Marshfield, however, the Tigers have won four of their last six heading into a tough stretch against the top teams in the Wisconsin Valley – Everest, Stevens Point and Wisconsin Rapids – to close out the regular season.
“We basically beat them (Everest) in the first game this season,” Telin said. “For the first 60 minutes, we had them. All we have to do is basically control the ball more than they do and score early.”
Tigers 8, Bluejays 0
Merrill 0 0 – 0
Marshfield 5 3 – 8
First half: 1. Mar, Alex Kelnhofer (Matt McCann assist) 11:07; 2. Mar, Nick Guzowski (penalty kick) 27:25; 3. Mar, Ethan Bell (Colin Telin) 29:02; 4. Mar, Al Reeser (unassisted) 30:18; 5. Mar, Reeser (Telin) 39:37.
Second half: 6. Mar, Ben Riesterer (penalty kick) 44:09; 7. Mar, Eli Oba (Telin) 49:12; 8. Mar, McCann (Bell) 74:15.
Saves: Merrill, Austin Gartmann 10; Marshfield, Trenton Todryk 3.
Records: Merrill 0-8 Wisconsin Valley Conference; Marshfield 8-10-2, 4-5 WVC.