EUREKA- A chemistry has developed between Eureka junior Kyle Rehg and senior Eli Remspecher, where instinctively, each can sense what the other is planning.
“We don’t have to say anything, we just know,” Remspecher said. “Having a soccer teammate like that is like nothing else. It’s a great bond to have.”
Remspecher’s no-look pass provided the catalyst and Rehg’s right foot delivered the solution in Eureka’s 1-0 victory over Parkway West on Tuesday in a tightly-contested boys soccer match at Eureka High School.
Eureka (8-0) continued its longest winning streak to start a season since winning eight consecutive games in 2010, and the Wildcats are amid their longest overall winning streak since 2012, when they won nine successive contests between October 9-29.
Of the eight victories this season, five have been decided by one goal.
“It’s just the hard-working individuals that we have,” Rehg said of the winning streak. “The coaches have conditioned us well and that gets us through these tough games.”
The game on Tuesday was a rematch of a tough battle with Parkway West played on Sept. 9 – a 2-1 Eureka victory decided in the final two minutes by a Remspecher penalty kick.
“It was adversity, and that’s what you learn throughout a season, ‘How do we bounce back from adversity?’” Parkway West coach Tom Herpel said. “This game, they were very excited for the chance to prove themselves again.”
But it was the chemistry between Rehg and Remspecher that concocted the first scoring chance and the first goal for Eureka.
In the 12th minute, a takeaway in the center of the field gave Remspecher room to operate. Despite Rehg silently trailing behind him, Remspecher instinctively laid off a pass to his right that Rehg ran onto and blasted into the net from 14 yards away.
“Eli kept his head up and found a good opportunity to pass the ball. I had a wide-open shot and just finished it,” said Rehg, who netted his sixth goal of the season and second game-winner.
Parkway West (7-4) proved that it could be dangerous offensively without even standing on the field.
The ability of senior Mitchell Seavey to launch throw-ins into the goal crease provided excellent scoring opportunities for the tall Longhorns throughout the game, including a Seavey heave from near the corner flag that senior Brian Wright headed inches wide.
“He seems almost superhuman the way he can throw it and pinpoint exactly where he wants it to go,” Herpel said. “Most of his (nine) assists so far are off his throw-ins.”
But the more dangerous the throw-in, the more aggressive Eureka junior goalkeeper Ryan Rose attacked it, fearlessly leaping into a mass of bodies to squeeze the ball with two hands before it could find a Parkway West player.
“Those are tough,” Rose said of the Seavey throw-ins. “I tried to get off my line a lot because they have some big guys who can head it in.”
In the second half, both teams exchanged glorious scoring chances that somehow stayed out of the net.
A spectacular bicycle-kick attempt by Eureka junior Luke Bennett barely missed the frame early the half.
In the 55th minute, Parkway West senior Jacob Boland timed a pass from 25 yards away and volleyed it over the reach of Rose, into the crossbar and over the goal. Less than two minutes later, Rehg gonged the crossbar more squarely for Eureka, ricocheting the ball back into the field of play from 20 yards out.
Rehg was dangerous throughout the game, including a strong drive down the right side and subsequent cross that senior Rylan Koester sent inches wide.
“If they gave us space, we took the shots that we had, and we found opportunities driving past their back line and getting it in towards their goal,” Rehg said.
But to maintain their perfect record, Eureka needed two excellent saves from Rose in the final 20 minutes of action.
First, a seemingly innocuous Longhorns’ shot from 17 yards deflected off a body and changed direction, requiring a sharp two-handed snag from Rose. Then, after a Seavey throw-in, junior Henry Wild turned within a crowd of bodies and targeted a corner.
Rose made a full-extension dive to his left to deny the tying goal.
“I didn’t see it at first, and at the very last second I saw it and threw myself at it,” Rose said.
It was the final test for Rose as Eureka junior defenders Logan Basler and Lucas Valenti cleared away Parkway West advances over the final 10 minutes to secure another one-goal victory for the Wildcats.
“We knew (Parkway West) was hungry and they were going to give us everything we could handle, but we hung with them and gave ourselves a chance (to win),” Eureka coach Mike Hanna said.
And Eureka has been taking advantage of every chance to win this season, winning its eighth consecutive game and fifth decided by one-goal.
“They’re not always blowouts, but we fight as hard as we can and we get the job done,” Remspecher said. “If we keep playing how we are, I don’t see why we can’t go 20-something and 0.”