Year after year, the Lake Central vs. Munster boys soccer game is highly anticipated. Throughout the years the wins has gone to both teams down the middle. On Mon. Aug. 27, the Boys Varsity Soccer team took down the Munster Mustangs in a stunning 2-1 battle.
“I would venture to say that [it is] 50/50 on how the results usually turn out. It’s a big rivalry. I think it’s like that with our school and sports with Munster. So anytime you can get at the better end of Munster, it’s a good night,” Coach Jereme Rainwater, Arts, said.
Emilio Zambrano (10) was the man of the night, scoring both goals to put Lake Central in the lead. With around 23 minutes remaining, Lake Central was down 0-1, but Zambrano saw an opportunity from Carson Shrader (12) and tapped in a 50/50 ball.
“He’s a great kid, I’ve coached him since he was five, I’ve seen him make that shot a significant portion of times. So, it wasn’t shocking to me [seeing him] using the inside of his foot [scoring] far post,” Coach Rainwater said.
Still tied 1-1, tensions were elevating on the field. Shrader played the ball through, giving Zambrano the chance to slide it through with the right hand side open.
“It was amazing. I couldn’t do it without my teammates and I had ten other guys behind me to do it. Munster has always been a rivalry, it’s 2-2 back and forth every year. It was [also] emotional for me scoring those two goals being the only sophomore [on varsity],” Zambrano said.
According to Rainwater, players like Tre Adams (9), Michael Pucci (12) and Shrader in the midfield stayed simple and were able to create room for strikers. Also, the boys’ ability to build against the wind put them on top.
“I thought we had a solid game. I think we [could have] cleaned up a few aspects, but overall it was a decent game. It’s a big game, it’s always a big game and it means a lot. It was a great finish from Emilio. It kind of just boosted the morale a little bit and got us fired up to finish it up. [The second goal] kind of sealed it for us. It fired us more [to] close out the game,” Robert MacNeill (11) said.
The boys will see Munster again during the Sectional run. Until then, they will prepare for their postseason journey for the 2018 season.
“We expect an even better game going into Sectionals. Both [teams] are going to be even more focused in the postseason, it is do or die. I can’t wait, it’ll be interesting,” Shrader said.
