The boys JV-A soccer team got off to a 1-1 start in district play this week, falling to Cy-Fair 4-3 and beating Cy-Ridge 1-0. 

The Spartans dug an early hole on the road on Tuesday night against Cy-Fair, with a foul in the box in the opening five minutes of play.  This foul resulted in a penalty kick, which was converted by the Bobcats and gave them an early 1-0 lead. The dismal start continued for the Spartans, as they conceded two more goals shortly thereafter. Jonathan Lumpkin got the scoring going for the Spartans midway through the first half with a long cross from just inside the right sideline that floated over the keeper and across the goal line.  Despite a halftime deficit of 3-1, the Spartans fought valiantly in the second half, twice narrowing the lead to a single goal in what was ultimately a 4-3 loss.  Midway through the second half, Bennett Swires converted a penalty kick to trim the lead to 3-2.  The Spartans pressed aggressively in search of the tying goal, but were thwarted with an unfortunate foul call which resulted in a converted direct kick just outside of the box to stretch the Bobcat’s lead to 4-2.  In a game in which the Spartans never gave up, Fabu Ndayishimye converted a free kick from 30 yards out with a beautiful left-footed shot, which he curled into the top left corner to cut the lead down to 4-3 with five minutes left. The Spartans pressed aggressively in the last five minutes to tie the game, but were unable to find an equalizer before time expired.

The Spartans secured their first district win on Friday at home, with a 1-0 victory over the Cy-Ridge Rams on a cold Friday night.  Both teams moved the ball well in the first half, with multiple scoring opportunities, each of which was denied by the opposing team.  Midway through the second half, Jonathan Lumpkin intercepted a ball in the defensive half and took it all the way down the right sideline before delivering a cross in front of the goal.  The cross was deftly deflected toward the goal by Fabu Ndayishimye, and Giancarlo Chelala finished the ball into an open net for the only goal of the game.  Our defenders played an exceptionally strong game, led by center back Ricky Estrada. Goalkeepers Yovanny Rodriguez and Juan Ugalde each had several stellar saves to preserve the win and clean sheet.