Glowe, Bortmas power Tigers

By Greg Gulas

sports @vindy.com

HOWLAND

The Boardman boys soccer team entered Thursday’s game with division rival Howland riding a three-game shutout streak, blanking opponents for well over three hours of play.

But the only goal that they allowed to the Tigers proved to be too much to overcome.

Peter Glowe scored at 18:07 of the opening half, providing all the offense necessary as the Tigers defeated Boardman, 1-0 in All-American Conference, Red Division action at Jennings P. Francis Memorial Stadium.

It was the eighth shutout of the season for Howland goalie Howard Bortmas, who has allowed just six goals.

“Our defense is really strong as they talk a lot and are able to keep pressure off me with their play. They’re a very active group that works really, really well together,” Bortmas said. “A win like this, especially since it’s a league win helps us build much needed momentum as we prepare for the remainder of the regular season.”

Glowe’s goal was his fourth on the season, but his first since the second game of the campaign.

“We threw the ball in, knocked it around and I just hit it with the right side of my foot. It just snuck by their goalie to his left side,” Glowe said, “Any win, especially in league play, is a big win but this win tonight is a morale booster.”

Tigers coach Brian Stiles said remaining patient was a big part of their game plan.

“We knew that it was going to be difficult to score that first goal so staying patient was the key. We didn’t want to push some players forward and open ourselves up to a counter attack,” he said. “The first time we played Boardman back on Sept. 2 we won 7-0, but to their credit they’ve improved and have done a great job since that meeting.”

Taylor Litz, a key part of the Tigers’ defensive unit, said it’s important to communicate with each other.

“We talk with one another when we are out there with our goals to keep pressure on the back and always win the ball that is in the air,” Litz said.

For Stiles, the win was big since Howland (8-0-3, 4-0-3) was coming off consecutive ties, was just 1-0-2 in the last three games and desperately wanted to put another notch in the win column.

“We have one league game remaining and that is against division foe Canfield; the team we’re battling for the division title. You cannot say enough about the play of Howard in goal and Peter,” Stiles said. “Howard always comes up with that big play and save when we need it most while Peter is a part of the team that I feel has no star, instead boasts a bevy of excellent players who cannot be keyed on. It seems like there’s a different player stepping up for us every game.”

Boardman coach Eric Simione said having a week off before playing Howland helped.

“We played much better tonight than we did in that first game and the key was that we had some extra time for players to heal injuries while using that time off to better prepare,” Simione said.

“It’s hard to evaluate the previous game when you’re playing the very next day. With more time and rest you’re a more focused unit. Howland is an exceptional team but deep down we felt they weren’t seven goals better than us that first game. They played a good game tonight but we felt like we played all-out as well.”

Boardman is now 7-5 (2-4 AAC Red).