By Dan Truttschel
Sports Correspondent
After the first game of Saturday’s Wisconsin Lutheran Quadrangular, the East Troy High School boys soccer team needed to refocus a bit.
After the second game, it was clear the Trojans did just that.
East Troy dropped a disappointing 5-0 decision to Thomas More in the opener, but bounced back for a 3-3 tie with Milwaukee Hamilton to leave the event feeling a bit more positive.
The Trojans had opened the week with a 3-1 Rock Valley Conference win Sept. 12 over Edgerton. East Troy took a 2-6-1 overall record and a 1-4-0 RVC mark into a road game Tuesday afternoon at Whitewater.
Results of that matchup were unavailable by press time.
East Troy coach Mike Bottum said it was important for his team to finish Saturday’s invitational on a high note.
“The team felt positive with the result (in the second match) given the strength and quickness of Hamilton,” he said.
The teams battled to a 2-2 tie after the first half. Both of East Troy’s goals came from the foot of Kai Bottum, the first on a 45-yard free kick, followed by a shot from 25 yards out.
Hamilton took a 3-2 lead in the second half before East Troy’s Matt Radcliffe knotted the score at 3-3 off a crossing pass from Evan Harding.
The opener was rough from the start, as the Trojans fell behind 2-0 at halftime, before Thomas More added three more goals after the intermission to roll to the easy win.
Bottum said he met with his team after the loss.
“(The) talk after the game focused on the frustration all players were feeling, how to deal with it and what goals we could set for each other at least for the next game,” Bottum said.
East Troy put together a solid effort in the week’s first game, a 3-1 win over Edgerton.
Bottum, who now has 13 of his team’s 15 goals this season, scored on a penalty kick, followed by an unassisted goal from 30 yards out to give the Trojans a 2-1 halftime lead.
In the second half, Bottum completed the hat trick with a goal off an assist by Noah Schere to account for the final score.
“(We) played well, had many shots,” Mike Bottum said. “The Edgerton goalie did a very good job.”
Trojans look ahead
Following Tuesday’s match with Whitewater, the Trojans hosted McFarland in an RVC matchup Thursday afternoon.
The goals remain the same this week, Bottum said.
“We will focus on defensive marking (as always), how to overcome the overall diminutive stature of the team on set plays and how to get our forwards to be more productive on goals and assists,” he said.
“As we know, all teams in the Rock Valley know Kai and to mark him. We must look to minimize his touches, develop more confidence in the younger players when under pressure and more quickly find space in the attacking half of the field.”
