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HIGH SCHOOL SPORTS
HHS opens season with win
HUNTINGTON -- Under a steady downpour Tuesday night, the Huntington High boys soccer team and new head coach Brian Erenberg opened the season with a 1-0 win over a tough Hurricane squad.
Erik Bjornson scored the goal at the 45-minute mark. With an opportunity directly in front of the goal, Bjornson delivered a perfect strike that landed in the back of the net.
"I shook the defender and just got a wide open shot," Bjornson said. "This was a big game for us and I don't see the team slowing down from here."
It marked a successful debut for Erenberg. He showed a quiet demeanor on the sidelines. It was assistant coach and former Marshall University player Firas Al-Samarraie that lit a fire under the players and let them know if they were doing something wrong.
"Firas and I feed off each other as coaches and he specializes in the strategics, while I am more of a disciplinarian," Erenberg said. "This is a huge statement game for us and coming into the season we said we were shooting for nothing less than a state title."
Early on the teams embarked in a battle at midfield as neither squad had a shot on goal for the first 13 minutes. But that quickly changed, as both teams had their moments pushing the ball up field and closing in on the goals.
Bjornson and Jamel Boukemis pressured Hurricane's defenders and moved the ball into scoring position. Patrick DeMoss played a crucial role at defender, knocking Hurricane off the ball and halting any established momentum.
Hurricane created several legitimate scoring opportunities, as they outshot Huntington 16-8. The Redskins controlled the ball and had eight corner kicks compared to zero for the Highlanders.
Huntington High goalkeeper Thomas Balch notched five saves.
But, the only stat that mattered was on the scoreboard.
Huntington High resumes play Thursday at home against Nitro at 7 p.m. Hurricane also plays Thursday, as the Redskins play host to Cabell Midland at 7:30 p.m.
HURRICANE 0 0 -- 0
HUNTINGTON HIGH 0 1 -- 1
Shots: HH 8; HU 16. Corner kicks: HH 0; HU 9. Saves HH 5 (Thomas Balch); HU 2 (Noah Black Hurst).
