AURORA | For the second straight season, the Cherokee Trail boys soccer team is off to a 3-1 start after it picked up a 2-0 victory over Fossil Ridge Saturday afternoon at Legacy Stadium.
Coach Mark Hill’s Cougars — who went on to a 12-4-3 season a year ago and has won at least 12 games in each of the past three seasons — bounced back from their only loss of the season with their second shutout of the season.
Senior Aiden Petty scored what turned out to be the game-winning goal in the opening half and senior Peter Eugenio added an insurance score midway through the second half as Cherokee Trail dropped the SaberCats to 0-1-3 on the season.
Just past the midway point of the first half, Petty pressured a long ball that was headed by a Fossil Ridge defender towards his keeper, Quinn Graebner. Petty gained possession, touched the ball around the outcoming Graebner and eased the ball into the open net.
In the 62nd minute, a Cherokee Trail player was fouled 20 yards from the goal and Eugenio slipped a free kick chance through a three-player wall of SaberCats and curled it into the net to double the lead.
Next up for Cherokee Trail is a 6 p.m. Sept. 12 home contest against Legend (1-3).
Courtney Oakes is Aurora Sentinel Sports Editor. Reach him at sports@aurorasentinel.com. Twitter/X: @aurorasports. IG: Sentinel Prep Sports
CHEROKEE TRAIL 2, FOSSIL RIDGE 0
Score by halves:
Fossil Ridge 0 0 — 0
Cherokee Trail 1 1 — 2
Cherokee Trail goals: Peter Eugenio, Aiden Petty
