Wranglers look to lessen mistakes on the field

By Mike Moore
Posted 4/28/17

The Pinedale High School varsity boys soccer team had its work cut out for it over the past week of the regular season as the team was tasked with taking on difficult opponents Riverton and Lander at home.

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Wranglers look to lessen mistakes on the field

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PINEDALE – The Pinedale High School varsity boys soccer team had its work cut out  for it over the past week of the regular season as the team was tasked with taking on difficult opponents Riverton and Lander at home.

The Wranglers hosted Riverton last Thursday, where Pinedale started the matchup playing strong.

“We came out and played pretty well right away,” head coach JD Dudrey said. “We passed the ball around well and created opportunities.”

A few mistakes out on the field allowed the Wolverines to jump out to a 3-0 advantage as the halftime break rolled around.

“We made a couple of mistakes and gave up some goals but we didn’t give up,” the coach noted.

Things got better for the Wranglers as they moved into the second half. The team began to step up its play out on the field, and it reflected on the scoreboard. With 12 minutes remaining in the game, junior Vicente Acosta played a ball across the field and sophomore Quade Saxton was able to block a clearance and beat the keeper to the ball to pick up a goal. Riverton added an additional goal in the second half, bringing the final score to 4-1.

From what Dudrey witnessed on the sideline, he says he was pleased to see his team pass the ball well and keep possession for the majority of the matchup.

“We never give up and we are improving every game,” he said.

Although he saw a lot of positives out on the field, he says mistakes often lead to the opposing team picking up goals. Because of that, he says that is one area they need to improve upon as the season continues.

“If we could cut down on some of our simple mistakes we would be in most games,” he said.

The team moved on to host Lander on Tuesday in Pinedale for Senior Night, as it was the final home game of the regular season.

Things started well for the Wranglers early on, as they came out fired up and played well throughout the first half. Lander picked up a pair of goals, giving the Tigers a 2-0 lead early on.

“We made a couple of mistakes,” Dudrey said. “Lander made some good plays and we got down 2-0 midway through the first half.”

The Wranglers did see some luck near the end of the first half after the team received a free kick around midfield. Junior Noel Aguirre hit a good ball into the box that bounced and senior Adam Walker got a head on it, sending the ball just over Lander’s keeper. At the half, Pinedale was down 2-1.

Things started to slip away from Pinedale once the second half got into full swing. The team started strong, but following a solid scoring opportunity, failed to find the back of the net for the remainder of regulation. Lander went on to score three additional goals, giving the Tigers a 5-1 victory.

Despite the loss, Dudrey was proud of how his team played out on the field.

“The boys played really hard,” he said. “They matched up pretty well with a good team.”

In addition, the head coach says his team is playing harder now than they have all season leading up to this point.

“The kids have been playing more physical and making more of the hustle plays that we want to see out of them,” he said.

Pinedale hit the road on Thursday to play Worland, and then take on Cody on Friday, May 5, in an away matchup. The game against Cody is set to begin at 5 p.m.