Lion soccer find tough competition in district

Lion Varsity vs. Smithville
The Lockhart Lions Boys Soccer team traveled to Smithville for a district game on Friday, Feb. 10, at Tiger Stadium.
The Lions came out on fire against the Tigers. Senior forward JC Vogel opened the scoring just 30 seconds into the match off a nice pass from junior David Moore. One minute later JC scored again, this time off a pass f

rom senior Joey Theriot. Two minutes later JC completed his second hat-trick of the year with an unassisted goal. JC”s hat-trick in three and a half minutes was the fastest in Lions” history.
“It was important for us to jump on the Tigers early so we could get as many people involved as possible,” said Coach Robert Ardis.
Senior Richie Martinez scored at the eight minute mark on an assist from Vogel, making the score 4-0. Eight minutes later junior Seth Guckian scored on another assist from Theriot, and score climbed to 5-0. Senior Steven Clawson rounded out the first half scoring with an unassisted goal, and the Lions took a 6-0 lead into halftime.
“I told the team to play soccer the right way,” Coach Ardis added. “We did not want to embarrass anyone. In the second half we wanted to work on passing the ball around and keeping possession.”
In the second half the Lions did just that, at one point linking as many as 17 passes together. Senior Sam Bussa scored the second half”s lone goal, burying a nice low drive in the nineteenth minute off a good pass from Seth Guckian. This marked Bussa”s first-ever goal as a Lockhart Lion, a career that began six years ago as a seventh grader.
The game ended with a Lion victory of 7-0. Freshman Cameron Peters made his varsity debut, as did Mauricio Gutierrez, who made two good saves in preserving the shut-out in the second half. Other key contributors were Gabe Atwell and Josh Yanez.
“This was a good team win. We played our style of soccer and were able to work the ball around well. The danger of a game like this is getting too overconfident for the next opponent,” Coach Ardis said.
The Lions are currently 8-2-1 overall and 6-1 in district play.
Lion Varsity vs. Lake Travis
The Lockhart Lions varsity soccer team played Lake Travis this past Tuesday, Feb. 7, at Lion Stadium.
“With several key injuries it is important that everyone elevates their work rate tonight. We need people to step it up”, said Coach Ardis.
The Lions came out on fire. Passes were right on target. Everyone was moving and communicating on the field. Lake Travis seemed stunned for the first few minutes of the game.
Sam Bussa and Seth Guckian sparked an attack that did not let up for the first half. David Moore and Rory Tunningley also had major roles in the first half.
Sixteen minutes in the game, JC Vogel served a perfect pass to Dwin Roland from the left side. Dwin netted the pass for a 1-0 lead. Nine minutes later JC Vogel doubled the Lions” lead to 2-0 on an unassisted goal. This score held up until halftime.
“That was the best soccer I have seen since I”ve been coaching. The way the team was passing, moving, and communicating was amazing. It was a truly inspiring half. But we”re only halfway done”, said Coach Ardis.
In the second half Lake Travis came alive. They spent much of the second half on the attack and had the Lions back on their heels. The Lions were able to fend off the attacks, thanks in large part to the play of Gabe Atwell, Cody Fehlis, Josh Yanez, and James “Jammer” Kellum.
Jammer made several key saves to preserve the Lions” lead, but Lake Travis was able to let one through to cut the lead to 2-1. Lake Travis continued to press, looking for the equalizer, but the Lion counter-attack continued to give the Cavaliers problems.
Richie Martinez sealed the game with a goal in the final minute to give the Lions a 3-1 victory.
“Almost everyone played well tonight. The young guys, Robbie Clifton, Jose Jaimes, and Michael Williams, stepped up and contributed. Tonight was a total team victory,” Coach Ardis added.
Lion JV vs. Lake Travis
The Lockhart Lions” junior varsity soccer team hosted Lake Travis this past Tuesday, Feb. 7, at Lion Stadium.
Lake Travis jumped on the Lions from the start. Crisp passing and constant movement left the Lions chasing the Cavaliers all over the field. It did not take long for the Cavaliers to net their first goal of the evening. By halftime the Lions were down 3-0.
“I think Michael Pittman played a tremendous first half in goal. Although he allowed three goals, Lake Travis could have easily scored three more. Defensive breakdowns caused these goals; they were not the keeper”s fault”, said Coach Ramez Antoun.
In the second half, the Lions came out fighting. Several passes were linked together and Lockhart was able to move the ball down the field. Shots were hard to come by, but the Lions kept trying. Lake Travis was able to counter-attack very well, and the Cavaliers scored three more goals in the second half on goalkeeper Mauricio Gutierrez. The final score was Lake Travis 6, Lockhart 0.
“Again, I believe Mauricio did well in goal. Lake Travis could have scored 10 goals tonight had it not been for the play of both our keepers. All we can do is regroup and get ready for Vista Ridge”.
The Lions are now 3-4 overall and 2-2 in district play.
Boys Soccer Topple Lehman in District Play
The Lockhart Lion varsity soccer team traveled to Lehman Tuesday night, Jan. 31, for a district game versus the Lobos.
The varsity team came out a little flat, and initially could not break down the Lobo defense, which was packed into their end of the field.
“We tend to try to score too quickly with the wind at our back instead of working the ball around. I think the team got anxious”, said Coach Ardis. “But eventually we calmed down and played our brand of soccer”.
JC Vogel finally put a goal home off an assist from David Moore with 25:00 taken off the clock, giving the Lions all they would need in a 1-0 lead. But JC was not finished. He tacked on two more goals in the first half to secure his first ever Lion hat-trick and bring his team-leading goal count to 10.
Richie Martinez also scored in the first half, and the Lions took a 4-0 lead into halftime.
In the second half the Lions went into the wind.
“I feel we play better into the wind. We may not score as many goals, but we are forced to play the ball on the ground as pass more,” Coach Ardis added.
The Lions possessed the ball for much of the second half, making good passes and keeping the Lobos at bay. Seth Guckian scored the lone second half goal for the Lions, and the game ended 5-0.
David Moore played an outstanding game, tallying three assists and numerous other good passes. The defense, led by Sam Bussa, Cody Fehlis, and Josh Yanez, shut down the Lobos on every opportunity. Michael Williams, playing in only his second varsity game, also contributed to the win.

(Courtesy of Ramez Antoun)