Parkersburg South's Brady Marshall heads the ball in front of Ripley's Eli Jenkins during the Patriots' 5-0 setback to the Vikings on Tuesday evening inside Erickson All-Sports Facility. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

PARKERSBURG — Ripley keeper Zander Kestner worked a clean sheet here Tuesday evening inside the Erickson All-Sports Facility and Viking teammate Cade McCoy tallied his first hat trick of the campaign as the visitors left town with a 5-0 victory versus Parkersburg South.

The Patriots of head man Rick George, who slipped to 2-5 and suffered their third straight defeat, had three good chances late in the first half to tie things up at one but couldn’t find the back of the net.

McCoy scored in the 18th minute via an Eli Jenkins assist as the 5-1-1 Vikings, who welcome in Sissonville at 6 p.m. Thursday to Death Valley, held the 1-0 edge at intermission.

“We tend to come out flat at the beginning of games. South is going to come at you so you got to be ready,” admitted RHS boss Bob Wilkinson, who watched his keeper Kestner finish with seven saves. “That kid is tough. He is. He battles out there and he’s taken a beating this year.

“It’s been a brutal season for him. He’s taken a ball between the legs. He’s had a forward drive through his face with his knee. He’s been punched in the face. He’s a tough kid and I’m glad he’s moving in my net and I’m not playing against him.”

Ripley's Tyler Donohew heads the ball toward the goal as Parkersburg South's Rigo Amezquita looks on during the Patriots' 5-0 setback to the Vikings on Tuesday evening inside Erickson All-Sports Facility. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

PSHS, which plays Thursday night at Warren, had shots on goal in the seventh minute from Rigo Amezquita and in the 33rd minute by Zach Farnsworth.

Patriot Wyatt Province was denied in the 35th minute when his shot was tipped by Kestner and it went off the crossbar. Brady Marshall had a chance at the end of the 39th minute and before the horn, Farnsworth’s blistering shot hit a Viking defender before Kestner gobbled it up.

“We definitely did see some good things, especially in the first half,” admitted coach George. “The boys were working hard and working well together. I’ve got some kids in different positions. We’ve got one of our seniors that has just come back into the lineup, so we’re still trying to kind of find the best positions for everybody, and we do have a lot of youth.

“We’ve got several sophomores starting. That’s good for them, but there is still a lot of game to learn for a lot of our team. It’s a work in progress and we’re going to keep working. I was proud of the effort they gave in the first half and credit to Ripley. They are a good team.”

McCoy got his hat trick early in the second half as he scored in the 48th minute via an Easton Haile assist and again in the 50th minute via another assist from Jenkins.

Parkersburg South's Bryson Gribble and Ripley's Che Wilkinson try to head the ball during the Vikings' 5-0 victory versus the Patriots on Tuesday evening inside the Erickson All-Sports Facility. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

In the 54th minute, the Patriots found themselves trailing 4-0. Patriot keeper Garrett Full made one of his seven saves on a shot by Haile, but Brenton Scholl wasn’t marked and put home the rebound.

Prior to the 4-0 cushion, McCoy nearly had his fourth goal of the match, but his header ended up on top of the net.

Jenkins, who took four of the Vikings’ five corner kicks, added the final tally with 19 seconds left in the 68th minute when he was assisted by Che Wilkinson.

“We’ve been working on some things. Where to turn, which routes to take, where your teammates are going to be. Cade is our workhorse. He’s all over the field. He’s like a hummingbird,” said coach Wilkinson, who is playing without the services of junior midfielder Everett Kish due to a broken collarbone he suffered in the preseason. “It’s taken us a while to get our stuff together.

“The team is finally organized enough to where they are playing well without him. That was a big loss. He’s the heart of our team and we had to redo some things. They’re responding and it’s a good group of kids. They are having a good time and they show good sportsmanship on the field, which we want. I told the coach from South this is one of the best sportsmanship I’ve seen in a match.”

Ripley's Cade McCoy, left, celebrates with teammate Che Wilkinson following the first goal of the match in the 18th minute of the Vikings' 5-0 victory Tuesday evening against Parkersburg South inside the Erickson All-Sports Facility. McCoy finished with his first hat trick of the campaign. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)

Contact Jay Bennett at jbennett@newsandsentinel.com

Ripley's Eli Jenkins, pictured here taking a corner kick in the first half, had a goal and a pair of assists in the Vikings' 5-0 victory versus Parkersburg South on Tuesday evening inside Erickson All-Sports Facility. (Photo by Jay W. Bennett)