Still seeking its first goal and win of the season the Highland Huskies traveled to Sigourney to face off against the Cobras on April 11. Unfortunately for Highland, the goals and wins will have to wait, with the Cobras emerging victorious over the Huskies, 6-0. 

Goals came quickly for the Cobras, scoring two of them within the first minute of the game and Highland faced an early 2-0 deficit. 

There were some promising moments for the Huskies to score in the first half from fast break opportunities. Multiple times the ball got past the Sigourney defense courtesy of a goal kick from Highlalnd’s goal keeper, junior Jackson Keller, but the ball would stray too close to the Cobra goalie for a relatively easy pick up of the ball, negating any potential shots on goal from sophomore Ayden Havel.   

The third goal for Sigourney came off a corner kick with 12:13 left in the first half. Their fourth goal followed quickly. At the kickoff after the previous goal Highland lost possession and the Cobras blitzed down the field to score again at the 11:59 mark in the first half.

The Cobras scored one more goal before halftime at the 5:43 mark after the Highland defense failed to clear the ball close to their own goal, making the halftime score 5-0 in Sigourney’s favor.  

Defense was the name of the game for both teams in the second half as those fast break opportunities Highland had in the first half dwindled and the Cobra’s goal output diminished.

The lone goal of the second half did belong to the Cobras and it came at the 11:12 mark courtesy of a quality cross kick from outside the penalty box. 

Highland’s best look for a goal came near the end of the game. A free kick was awarded to the Huskies after a penalty and the free kick was close to the Cobra’s goal. The kick crossed the goal but no Highland player was able to complete the sequence to score a goal.

Central Lee 4, Highland 0

In its second game of the same week, the Huskies took the trip to Donnellson to battle the Central Lee Hawks on April 13. Both teams entered the game winless and it was Highland who would remain that way, losing to the Hawks, 4-0.

With this win Central Lee has now beaten the Huskies in two straight years, with the last game, on April 19, 2022, ending with a 8-0 victory for the Hawks. 

Highland faced a one goal deficit at halftime, but a trio of goals from Central Lee in the second half would ultimately put away the Huskies,  

Highland’s goalkeeper, junior Jackson Keller, finished the game with 16 saves.

Columbus 6, Highland 0

Capping off a busy three game week the Huskies would stay home to host the Columbus Wildcats in a Southeast Iowa Super Conference matchup on April 17. Shutout for the fifth straight game, 10 straight dating back from last year, Highland was defeated by the Wildcats, 6-0. 

In Highland’s last matchup against Columbus the Huskies lost 6-1 on April 18, 2022. 

It was a windy Monday afternoon, the flags at the corner of the field were being blasted by wind with such great force they were nearly touching the ground at times. 

After five minutes of play Columbus took an early 2-0 lead. The half ended with the Wildcats putting three more goals in the back of the net, with the last one coming in with 11:35 left on the clock after Columbus took advantage after a goal kick from Highlands goalkeeper, junior Jackson Keller, went array from the wind.

In the second half Highland now had the wind on their backs and it helped them on defense, since they were able to hold Columbus to just a single goal. 

Down by six points with very little time left Highland saw its best chance at a goal the whole game. With about one minute left sophomore Ayden Havel was able to receive a pass from a teammate and get past the Columbus defense, setting up a shot of goal from a close range. 

Havel unleashed a powerful shot, but the ball would travel over the entire goal. It was an impressive kick as the ball ended up bouncing over two fences and coming to a rest near the pitcher’s mound of the nearby baseball field. 

With this loss Highland remains on the hunt for its first win and its first goal of the season. 

Up next, Highland (0-6) will travel to and play against Danville (0-1) on April 20. Then the Huskies will stay home to host conference opponent Hillcrest (2-0) on April 24.