Horton boys take JV soccer provincials

BY JOHN DECOSTE

The Advertiser/NovaNewsNow.com

Horton won its first-ever provincial junior varsity boys’ soccer title on its home field in Greenwich Oct. 27.

Ally Tidcombe, Josh McLearn and Pat Murphy had one goal apiece at Horton topped Sydney Academy 3-1 in an entertaining provincial final.

The Griffins had advanced to the final with a 1-0 victory Friday over the Northumberland Nighthawks. Tidcombe had the lone goal in the first half, and keeper Richard Lewis earned the shutout with help from an inspired team defense.

The Horton JV girls competed at their provincial tournament in New Glasgow and finished third, winning the bronze medal, with a 1-1 record.

Horton was blanked 2-0 by host North Nova in their opener, then won the bronze medal the following day with a 2-0 win on goals by Brianna Bunch and Erika Brown.

Otherwise, it was a weekend of mixed results for local high school soccer teams.

On the positive side, Central Kings advanced to D-2 girls’ provincials this past weekend with a convincing 5-0 shutout of Middleton Oct. 27 in Cambridge. Robyn McNeill had three goals and Kennedy Bennicke and Lauren Landry one each in the win.

The Central Kings boys also punched their ticket to provincials with a 4-1 win over Liverpool. James Nunn, Matt Borshel, Adam Jones and Nick deAdder had the goals.

The NKEC girls were not as fortunate at a provincial qualifier in Cape Breton, dropping a close 3-2 decision to Amherst (which then advanced to provincials with a 5-0 win over SAERC).

Emma Young and Laura Roy scored in a losing effort for NKEC, which, with up to 16 potential returning players, is already looking forward to next fall.

The NKEC boys suffered a similar fate, losing 2-1 to Forest Heights at their qualifier.

In D-1 action, the Horton boys, after winning the regional banner, ended up in a tough qualifier against Citadel from Halifax. The Griffins trailed by just 1-0 at halftime, but were outscored 4-1 in the second half of a 5-1 loss. Drew Redden had Horton’s lone goal.