BROOKINGS – The Bobcat boys turned up the offensive pressure in the second half to turn a competitive Eastern South Dakota matchup with Harrisburg into a rout over the final 23 1/2 minutes.
Brookings led 2-0 at halftime before tallying six second-half goals – five in the last 23:34 – to beat the Tigers, 8-0, and improve to 3-1 overall and 3-0 in the ESD.
“Second-half team is what we’ve been the last two games,” said BHS head coach Steve Binkley. “Huron was up on us 3-1 and it took two goals at the very end to come back (to win) 4-3 against them, so that was a 3-0 second half.
“Our team was clicking at the end of the game and that was really good to see. It wasn’t just one guy taking over; it was playing unselfishly and playing together – just playing good soccer.”
Junior Zokou found the back of the net in the second minute of play to get the ‘Cats on the scoreboard, and then, rolled a second one past the Harrisburg keeper with 7:17 to play in the first half for the two-goal lead at the break.
Daniyil Potapenko scored back-to-back goals – the first assisted by Zokou – to push the lead to 4-0 before Michael Kindvall sandwiched a pair of goals around single tallies by Keegan Fields and Vinnie Fornari over the final 20 minutes and 22 seconds.
Brookings held a 33-6 edge in shots, including a 14-2 advantage in shots on goal as Jake Weber and Zander Larson each had one save to combine for the shutout win in goal.
The Bobcats travel to Sioux Falls on Thursday to face Lincoln in a nonconference matchup.
Play begins at 6 p.m. at Yankton Trails.
Register photo: Junior Zokou eyes his shot that eluded Harrisburg’s Logan Mutchelknaus (18) and Max Bates (4), in addition to the goalkeeper, for Zokou’s second goal of the first half in the Bobcats’ 8-0 Eastern South Dakota Conference win over the Tigers on Tuesday at Fishback Soccer Park.
