by Rusty Ellis
The Cookeville Cavaliers earned a big district victory on Tuesday night, as they shut out Smyrna 3-0.
Both teams battled back-and-forth early, as it took over 15 minutes for Cookeville to finally strike. In the 16th minute, Brayden Nagy put home a goal to put the home team up 1-0.
That was the score going into halftime, as Cookeville did a good job of maintaining possession throughout the first half and limited Smyrna’s scoring opportunities.
In the 47th minute, Jud Reese knocked home the second Cavalier goal of the night to run the lead up to 2-0, and Max Allen put the finishing touches on the game with his goal in the 63rd minute, as Cookeville took home a 3-0 win over Smyrna.
For head coach Bralen Clouse, the biggest thing he wanted to see his team do on Tuesday night was convert on an open-field play, and they did just that.
“We played really well, I thought we possessed it great,” Clouse said. “We did good at corners and everything, but something tonight clicked…we talked about our game plan yesterday and they executed it almost perfectly tonight.”
The difference in energy was noticeable from the jump, as Cookeville just had a little bit more fight early than Smyrna. That’s something that Clouse believed was a difference in the game.
“We know Smyrna’s a great soccer team, so it was our goal to win 50-50 balls,” Clouse said. “We wanted to be on them every time they got the ball, because that gets in people’s heads…I think they did that fantastically tonight.”
As far as what he wants to see his team do better, Clouse said he wants to see continued improvement in scoring and playing a little bit better in terms of controlling possession.
“More possession-style, not having to sweat the game,” Clouse said. “When you score, put your foot on the throat and just keep going.”
Cookeville’s next match will be Thursday, as they travel to Mt. Juliet High School.
