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Tigers, Tornadoes tie in boys soccer showdown

By Jordan Holland 5 min read

DEVOLA -- In a match that pitted two strong programs with a combined 12-1-3 record against one another, Marietta and West Muskingum played to a 1-1 draw Thursday night at Jerry Brock Field.

In an unfortunate turn of events, Marietta sophomore Eli Lemley suffered an injury in a collision with another player late in the match and was taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons.

"He landed pretty hard," said Marietta head coach Todd Morris. "He's had a shoulder injury, so that's what we thought it was initially, but he had a little bit of tenderness in the neck area. He has feeling. Hoping it's a precautionary type thing. We're kind of just getting that news right now. Eli's an important part of what we do. Good kid. We'll be checking up on him, for sure."

Added West Muskingum head coach Ryan Barks, "Our thoughts and prayers are definitely with (Lemley). We never like seeing that. We like hard, physical soccer, but nothing like that."

The match itself was about what both coaches anticipated in terms of energy and intensity. The Tigers (5-1-3) got on the board first to lead 1-0 at halftime, but the Tornadoes (7-0-2) tied it up early in the second half. The 1-1 score held until the final horn sounded.

"They're unbeaten for a reason," Morris said. "It was punches back and forth and no one wanted to go down. We kept battling and they kept battling. That's a really quality team. I've known Ryan Barks for 20, 25 years. Great guy. Runs a great program. He's got a really special group this year, and for us to be able to get a draw with them, with kind of a younger team -- we really fought well. Can't be unhappy with a draw in this match."

With 6:37 left in the match, West Muskingum's Aiden Michel received his second yellow card, forcing the Tornadoes to play a man down the remainder of the match. However, Barks' side was able to hold on and preserve the tie.

"We’ve been in that situation before, so we knew a better adjustment to do this time than we had in the past," said Barks, whose squad also had a tie with Tri-Valley in its most recent match. "Stuck to the same game plan. Obviously, we’re down another target up top, but our guys executed well and played well. We knew it was going to be a great match with Marietta. They're a top-notch program. I was happy to see my boys step up to the occasion and hold on. A lot of adversity, a lot of resiliency. Not much more we want in soccer."

At the 23:11 mark in the first half, the Tigers found the back of the net. Maddox Broomfield's corner kick found Graesyn Moat on the far side. Moat went up and got his head on the ball, sending it across to the right side of the goal past West M keeper Weston Ritchie.

"Graesyn's obviously got size," Morris said. "He’s good at finding space. He’s good at going up in the air to try to win balls. The scary thing is he’s only a sophomore. Sky’s the limit for Graesyn. I know that’s very cliche, but it’s someone that I know we’re looking to build around for the next two-and-a-half years."

The Tornadoes didn't score in the first half, but not for a lack of effort. West Muskingum put seven shots on frame before halftime, but MHS keeper Finn Tindall was able to keep the goal clean.

However, at the 31:03 mark in the second, the Tornadoes finally got the equalizer when Dyllan Farmer found the back of the net.

"It was them making a play," Morris said. "We were maybe a little unlucky with the way the ball bounced off a tackle and kind of fell on their path, but sometimes you got to make your own luck. They did, and they took advantage of it. Good teams find a way, and they’re a good team. They’re going to have a ton of success."

With 22 minutes left, Marietta's Cole Bergin put a shot on target. The ball deflected off Ritchie and ended up in front of Moat, whose shot caromed off the right post. Moat later put a free kick on frame following Michel's yellow card, but Ritchie went up and batted it away.

Finally, with around 30 seconds left on the clock, Broomfield's corner kick bent sharply toward the goal, but Ritchie was there to corral it as the Tornadoes avoided their first loss of the season.

"You got two big dogs going at it," Barks said. "Love coming down here and playing Marietta. I really do. A midseason game like this tells both of us what we need to tweak in the next couple weeks going into the postseason. Thankful we don’t have to meet each other. We get to cheer each other on at that point. Coach (Morris) and I have a really good relationship clear back to the beginning of our careers, so I’m hoping for the best for them. Hopefully we can both make a run and watch each other play in Columbus."

The Tigers have a week off before a trip to Logan next Thursday, while West M plays host to Morgan on Tuesday.

Contact Jordan Holland at jholland@newsandsentinel.com.

At Jerry Brock Field

Marietta 1, West Muskingum 1

W (7-0-2) 0 1 -- 1

M (5-1-3) 1 0 -- 1

M: Graesyn Moat, Maddox Broomfield corner kick, 17th minute

W: Dyllan Farmer, unassisted, 49th minute

Team stats

Shots on goal: W: 10; M: 7; Keeper saves: W: Weston Ritchie 6; M: Finn Tindall 9; Corner kicks: W: 4; M: 4

Next game: Marietta at Logan, 7:15 p.m. Thursday

Starting at /week.