CBHS Soccer Shows Promise in Scrimmage
By: Tripp Vistica
Feb. 25, 2020
As the Brothers begin their season with a scrimmage against Germantown High School tonight at Tom Nix Stadium on the CBHS campus, the Brothers begin to aim for another State Championship after losing in the semifinals last year.
Dating back to 1990, Christian Brothers High School’s soccer team has been considered one of the best the best programs in the state and the nation. The Brothers have won 10 D-II State Championships and 7 State Runner-ups. The Brothers have also won the D-II West Region Championship 22 times, including 10-straight from 2000-2009, and they were the D-II West Region Runner-up in 1999.
CBHS JV-Purple head coach, Jaimie Brummer, believes the team should be very competitive this season. Brummer said, “We set very high expectations, and we’ve got a lot of returning players.”
The Brothers start the season shorthanded with their captain and starting goalkeeper injured due to broken ribs. The backup goalkeeper is injured too, but that was not a problem for the Brothers tonight. The Brother’s third-string goalie had a great game as he helped CBHS shutout Germantown High School, 4-0.
CBHS sophomore, DR Nunn is a midfielder for the CBHS varsity soccer team. Nunn believes the team’s expectations have not changed with the team’s starting goalkeeper out due to injury. Nunn said, “Until then, we’re going to act like we have our regular starting goalie out there and treat it the same way.”
CBHS controlled the ball for most of the first half, keeping the pressure on Germantown’s side of the field. It only took CBHS 15 minutes to score their first goal of the season. CBHS continued to pressure Germantown throughout the first half while rarely allowing Germantown into the Brother’s half of the field, but CBHS was unable to add another goal before first half ended 1-0.
CBHS increased their pressure on Germantown’s defense in the second half. CBHS applied immediate pressure on Germantown, and the Brothers barely missed a second goal less than one minute into the half. They kept that pressure on Germantown’s defense leading the Brothers to a second goal only 10 minutes into the half.
After the Brothers second goal, CBHS started gaining momentum and were able to apply even more pressure on Germantown. The relentless pressure by the CBHS attackers led to the Brothers scoring their second goal of the half just 10 minutes after their last goal, giving CBHS a 3-0 lead.
The Brothers never stopped applying pressure on Germantown’s defense. CBHS earned a penalty kick 30 minutes into the second half, but the Brothers missed the penalty kick by kicking the ball over the crossbar. However, only 3 minutes later the Brothers added another goal on a beautiful shot off a free kick outside the penalty box making the score 4-0 in favor CBHS. The Brothers continued to dominate the time of possession for the rest of the game and completed a 4-0 shutout victory against Germantown.
The shutout showcased the Brother’s talent on defense, as well as giving their third-string goalkeeper confidence heading into the season that played like a starter tonight. This team will continue to improve. Especially, when CBHS’ starting goalkeeper and team captain returns after his ribs heal. He will add to the Brother’s stifling defense that was on display tonight.
The game was a preseason scrimmage, so the Brothers did not play a lot of their starters for most of the game. Instead, the Brothers used this opportunity to sub a lot of players and get more players some playing time before the regular season begins, while also allowing the Brothers usual starters to knock some rust off their game before the start of the regular season.
CBHS has the talent to win their first State Championship since 2016, and this group of players is hungry for that title. None of these players have made it past the semifinals, and they are hungry for a chance to play for the State Championship. However, after a four-year drought of not making the championship game, just getting there is not enough for CBHS. They want to win the State Championship, and they know they have the talent to give CBHS their eleventh State Championship in the past 30 years.
CBHS junior, Oliver Jones is a member of the JV-Purple soccer team. Jones explained his belief in the talent of this year’s team. Jones said, “They are very smart with the ball. They’re very quick and have a lot of speed and skill.”
Even during a preseason scrimmage, it was easy to see the team’s hunger to win another State Championship for CBHS. However, the biggest question is whether or not injuries will get in their way. Hopefully, Nunn will be right. The team will rise up and not allow injuries to derail CBHS from winning their eleventh State Championship.
Tripp Vistica 