EARL WATT
• Leader & Times
Liberal spent most of Tuesday’s game against Great Bend near the Panther goal, and while some shots sailed around the goal, the Redskins found the net multiple times in a 6-0 blowout win.
Several shots went off the crossbars, and the Great Bend goalkeeper was abel to get deflections to deny other shot attempts.
But Giezi Gonzalez started the scoring frenzy by lifting a shot high into the net in the first 10 minutes of the game, and the Redskin scoring onslaught continued.
Liberal led 4-0 by halftime and added two more goals in the second half to secure the 6-0 win.
The Redskins secured second place in the Western Athletic Conference despite having one more game against Dodge City today.
Liberal could have been playing for the WAC title but a tie with Garden City made it impossible to catch the Dodge city Red Demons.
Another key to Tuesday’s win over Great Bend was playoff seeding. The Redskins secured at least a top four finish in the Class 6A West Division. Liberal is currently 11-3-1, and fifth place Topeka is 11-5-0.
By finishing in the top four, the Redskins guaranteed themselves tow home playoff games as long as they win the first game.
Gonzalez scored two goals Tuesday against Great Bend, Ariel Gaytan also had a pair of goals, and Diego Pavia had a goal. Suain Moncayo added to his all-time leading scoring record by scoring a goal.
Liberal had a chance to be the third seed before heading to Kansas City last weekend where they dropped a pair of close contests including a 1-0 loss to Overland Park Blue Valley and a 2-1 loss to defending state champion Olathe East.
But Liberal was able to come back home and chalk up a Senior Night win over Great Bend.
“It was a great night,” Liberal coach Carlos Ruiz said. “We had beautiful weather. It was perfect. We did some good things, but we can always get better. I was happy for the boys and everyone who was here.”
Despite the celebration of Senior Night, Ruiz said there was an effort to stay focused.
“The senior recognition is nice, but you have to put a performance together,” he said. “We dominated the second half against Olathe East, it just didn’t fall for us. We played the defending state champions and we played better, but the score didn’t reflect it.
“We work the psychological aspect. Enjoy Senior Night, but you are here to do a job. You are here to do what you are destined for. We are a state favorite. Those two losses this weekend taught us a lot. I’m glad it happened now. We played our best soccer the second half against Olathe East.”
Last year, Liberal ended Dodge City’s perfect record on the last game of the season, and they will have another chance to do that again.
“It’s a shame we’re not playing for a WAC title,” Ruiz said. “That tie killed us. It’s a rivalry game. We want that bell back. We want to remain top four in the seeding to host a regional championship game. We mentioned that before the game, we have to do the little things right. Let’s not overlook anybody. The only team to beat us is ourselves. Now they saw it in Kansas City. Those losses taught us more than they realize.”
