Howard boys soccer beats River Hill, 1-0, for first time in coach Nils Schroder's 14-year tenure
Oct. 5—Right before he took the free kick, Howard midfielder Rowan Nelson got a simple message from his teammate Logan Ehart, "Put it back post."
Nelson did exactly that, delivering a perfect ball as Ehart calmly headed it into the back of the net for the only goal in the Lions' 1-0 victory over River Hill on Monday. It marked Ehart's first goal of the season and first in a Howard uniform.
"They like to put all of their people on the front post, so I was making a back run," Ehart said of what he saw. "I knew I could accelerate faster than them, so I just made my run and got it done. I got the ball to my head and just got it in."
The victory is the first for Howard coach Nils Schroder against River Hill in his 14 seasons.
Playing in the pouring rain, the opening 40 minutes served as an acclimation period for both sides. Neither team generated any strong chances as possession rotated back-and-forth. The best opportunity of the first half for either team came in the 34th minute, when Jason Jia's free kick attempt a few yards outside the 18-yard box was ushered away by Lions goalie Luke Ryerson.
However, Howard's offense enjoyed more success in the second half and set the tone early. Forward Will Tom and midfielder Remy Valiente played an integral part in that effort, but River Hill goalie Zach Glass proved up to the task, keeping the game scoreless as momentum continued to shift in Howard's direction.
"Our left and right midfielders, Lucas and Remy Valiente, were open the whole game," Nelson said. "I think in the second half we just started to go to them more and realize that our space was out wide instead of in the middle."
Schroder encouraged his players to continue attacking, expecting the breakthrough would come. It did in the form of Ehart's header, as teammates sprinted to celebrate with the defender in the corner.
"I think that's one of the best things that we've done this year is being able to change what we've been doing in-game," Schroder said. "Lots of teams that I've coached in the past, we can fix it after the game, but this team will see something in the game and they'll switch. They'll switch who's man-marking, they'll switch who's playing left and right because they see an advantage. I try to empower them to take advantage of that."
Trailing by one, River Hill (3-7 overall, 2-6 Howard County) increased the pressure as it searched for the tying goal. The Hawks earned their first corner kick of the second half in the 73rd minute but were unable to convert as the shot missed the near post.
"I feel like we all need heart because we all really want to win," River Hill sophomore Sam Van Ert said. "It's been a rough few games, but I feel like we all want to win so badly that we'd be willing to put everything on the line, our bodies and everything. We all just want to do as best as we can."
They continued to press forward as the Lions' back line held strong. River Hill's aggressiveness led to a breakaway opportunity for Howard in the 78th minute but Glass was there for the diving stop, his ninth.
After one last unsuccessful corner by River Hill, Howard (4-3-2) maintained possession as the final seconds waned.
River Hill fell on its senior night with another narrow defeat.
"We're getting better, we've got nine sophomores on the team and three freshmen," River Hill coach Matt Shagogue said. "The goal is to continue to get better and in the playoffs, I think that's what we'll be. We'll get players back healthy. They believe in each other, they play hard for each other. It's only going to make us better."
