Second-half flurry
“The first goal is always the toughest. It completely settled us down.” Roger charcap, Parkview boys soccer coach
Sometimes it takes scoring a goal to settle a team down and renew its focus. For the Parkview Baptist boys’ soccer team, that goal came early in the second half Saturday afternoon.
Sims Thompson’s 49th-minute goal broke a scoreless tie, and sparked a 10-minute scoring binge as the fourth-seeded Eagles soared past No. 29 Abbeville High 4-0 in first-round Division III playoff action at Parkview.
Steven Zumstein closed out the scoring for Parkview (17-6-2) with goals in the 52nd, 56th and 59th minutes. It was Zumstein’s second hat trick this season, and it took the tension out of a game that Abbeville (3-9) kept close longer than expected.
The win advances Parkview to second-round play, where it will host 13th-seeded Episcopal of Acadiana at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
“Being 0-0 at halftime definitely woke us up,” Parkview coach Roger Charcap said. “We knew if we didn’t show up, it wouldn’t be good. We finally woke up a little, but we still didn’t play the way we’re capable. Give all the credit to Abbeville for that.”
Parkview outshot Abbeville 20-7, including a 10-2 advantage in the first half. It wasn’t enough to produce any separation until 10 minutes into the second half.
Abbeville goalkeeper Logan Landry came out to meet a pass deep into the penalty box, and collided with two players, one from Parkview and one a teammate. Thompson gained possession and fired the ball into the left side of the net for the first score. Landry finished the game with six saves.
“The first goal is always the toughest,” Charcap said. “It completely settled us down, and there was a 15- or 20-minute span where it looked like we knew what we were doing.”
Zumstein’s first goal came off a corner kick. Neil Scott sent the kick past the far post to Kelly James, whose header centered the ball to Zumstein. The quick passing set up Zumstein’s short header into the goal for a 2-0 lead.
“Once they scored, particularly that second goal, it dampened our spirit,” Abbeville coach Roger Butter said. “We’ve been playing hard, but we’ve never played anybody that close all the way through the first half. I think we kind of lost momentum.”
In the 56th minute, Zumstein ran down a pass to the right of the goal, and placed a sharp kick toward the left side of the net. Landry got his hands on the ball, but it got through anyway for a 3-0 Parkview lead.
Three minutes later, as Abbeville was trying to clear out a ball near its goal, Zumstein took control just outside the top of the penalty box. Zumstein’s kick to the left side of the net went untouched, and the Eagles lead was 4-0.
Parkview’s best scoring chances in the first half were both thwarted by the crossbar.
In the 24th minute, Daniel Myers’ shot from left of the goal hit the crossbar square, and bounced out to the right where a Parkview follow shot was wide left.
In the 36th minute, Thompson’s touch pass to Myers gave him a one-on-one shot against Landry. The Abbeville goalie deflected the ball up, and then secured it after it ricocheted down off the crossbar.
“In the first half, we didn’t come out focused,” Charcap said. “I think Abbeville wanted it more than we did. They looked like a team that had nothing to lose, and we looked like a team that thought it was going to be easy.”