Tigers knock off ESJ, Bonnabel

The Hahnville boys’ soccer team picked up a pair of key district wins last week, beating both East St. John and Bonnabel by identical 1-0 scores.

The Tigers took on East St. John in rainy conditions and the wet field caused the ball to skip. Both teams had plenty of chances to score early and the Tigers dodged a bullet when East St. John missed a penalty kick in the first half.

Hahnville would take the lead in the second half after winning the possession game and applying pressure. That pressure paid off when a Wildcat defender was called for a hand ball in the goal box, resulting in a penalty kick for the Tigers. Junior Craig Ford took the shot and sailed the ball into the net to clinch the win for Hahnville.

The Tigers started the second round of district play when they traveled to Bonnabel. The game was very physical from the start and the Tigers defense, led by senior goalie Mason Boyer and senior defender Adrienne Edwards, helped hold off the Bruin attack.

Meanwhile, Tiger midfielders Brennen Samaha, Kyle Sales and Coby Orgeron played well in possession and were able to set up Julius Medina and Ford for scoring opportunities. The Tigers were able to ping the post on a few hard shots, but were unable to take the lead until the second half.

That’s when Samaha laced a corner kick across the front of the goal and junior forward Dakota Evans was in the right spot at the right time to send the ball into the goal.

The Tigers held on down the stretch to come away with the 1-0 win.