By RICH TORRES
FISHERS – After two straight victories and a convincing 3-0 win over Class 3A No. 12 Carmel on Saturday, the 3A No. 4 Hamilton Southeastern boys soccer team had its sights on an early-season winning streak.
The unranked Brownsburg Bulldogs had other ideas in mind on Tuesday night during both team’s Hoosier Crossroads Conference opener.
The visiting Bulldogs (2-0-2, 1-0 HCC) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the first half and snapped a 1-1 tied in the second to upset HSE (2-1, 0-1 HCC) with a 3-1 win.
HSE was coming off back-to-back shutout victories against Mt. Vernon 2-0 and Carmel, but the Bulldogs struck in the 12th minute and added two more decisive goals in the 45th and 68th minutes.
Brownsburg settled in after the game’s eighth minute and came out firing once their offense found its rhythm behind 16 shots overall and 13 shots on goal against HSE goalkeeper Jake Kane, who logged nine saves.
“Us playing Carmel on Saturday is no excuse. I told them at halftime, Brownsburg played two games on Saturday,” HSE head coach Chris White said. “We got some talent, and we got some guys that can play, and we can be a good team. But, until they decide they want to work together and not be outmanned, the talent isn’t going to mean a whole lot.”
Brownsburg attacked repeatedly and controlled the midfield throughout the game, leading to multiple opportunities. HSE had its share of chances with 17 shots and 11 shots on goal, but the Royals could only find the back of the net once.
Kam Greenwald slid a perfect pass to Harsahil Gandham in the game’s 40th minute to tie it 1-1 with 13.4 seconds remaining before halftime. The goal was Gandham’s first of the year.
From there, the Royals found little success.
“Saturday against Carmel we played hard. The previous Saturday we didn’t, but we were still able to get a win,” White said. “When you play quality opponents and you don’t play hard, good things aren’t going to happen for you.”
HSE’s Sam Kay had a solid shot on goal in the game’s 42nd minute and Parker Gopsill fired another potential goal in the 63rd minute, but Brownsburg goalkeeper Evan Huston recorded eight clean saves to keep HSE subdued.
“We created some opportunities that normally we’d finish, but just the mental approach was not there today,” White said. “We left those guys out on islands. We didn’t play as a group. The defensive transition wasn’t very good. They have some nice players that we let become a lot more dangerous because we just wouldn’t get down on defend one-on-one like we need to.”
Brownsburg was coming off a 1-1 tie against Cathedral on Aug. 21, a 6-2 win over Elkhart Memorial on Saturday and a 2-2 tied against 3A No. 13 Columbus East on the same day.
“We just came tonight wanting to improve on how we’ve been playing. We came in tonight knowing it was going to be a good game. All HCC games are, so we just wanted to come out and show what we could do,” Bulldogs head coach Josh Brown said. “It was a great result against a very good team.”
The Bulldogs’ first goal unfolded off two well-placed passes from Gavin Waltz to Delijah N’gbesso to Noah Yohannes, who lined the ball past Kane. Yohannes dropped a corner kick in the path of N’gbesso to put Brownsburg ahead 2-1 early in the second half.
“We’re going to create chances. We know we will. We’re very fast up top. I’d put my front three against any team in the state with their speed,” Brown said. “We struggled earlier in the season putting balls into the back of the net, but tonight we got chances and we’re going to get chances. If we convert them, we should do OK.”
The Bulldogs earned another opportunity with 11:18 left on the clock as Waltz was fouled, earning a penalty kick. He hammered in the goal to give Brownsburg a comfortable lead.
“The PK helped. That was effort. It was a hustle move by Gavin Waltz, who got tripped. He’s one of the fastest kids in the state. He runs track, too. I knew he would get to that ball. We got fortunate with that and it kind of sealed it for us,” Brown said.
The Bulldogs dominated the game up top and while currently unranked, they might garner the attention of the pollsters after their latest win.
“The rankings are what they are. It’s possible. Who knows? I’ve been around this game for a long time. I’ve seen teams that are ranked that shouldn’t be and teams that aren’t that should be,” Brown said. “If we do, I think this 3-1 win helps. It’s not like we won 1-0 at our place. We won 3-1 on the road. We had a lot of the run of play. It wasn’t lucky. If we do, we do. If not, we keep pounding.”
For the Royals, they host Shelbyville in a non-conference game on Thursday before traveling to HCC foe Franklin Central on Saturday in an attempt to course correct.
“We talk about it all the time. It’s their team. They have to get it figured out, and you would think this is going to motivate them,” White said. “But, I thought the wakeup call last Saturday against Mt. Vernon was going to motivate, and it did for one game. So we have to see if we can find the leadership to try to push it and the consistency to bring it night in and night out.”
Hamilton Southeastern’s Kam Greenwald (11) goes after the ball during the Royals’ Hoosier Crossroads Conference game with Brownsburg on Tuesday. (Kirk Green)