By ISAAC DEER
TopSports.news
The longstanding soccer rivalry between Topeka High and Topeka West was renewed Tuesday night at Hummer Sports Park, with the Trojans rolling to a 3-0 victory over the Chargers.
Leading the offense for Topeka High was freshman CJ Brown, who had a pair of first-half goals to give the Trojans the momentum before Chris Gomez added High's final goal.
“We knew with West it was going to be a fight,'' Topeka High coach Derek Snook said. "A tough, competitive rivalry brings the best out of our team.
“Overall, we played well at times. We hit the shots when we needed them to hit and we keep on getting better.”
Topeka High put on an impressive defensive performance against the Chargers.
Midfielder Zaka Blocker had a few key stops to keep Topeka West off the scoreboard while goalkeeper Logan Murray turned in highlight-reel plays all night long.
The key defensive moment was when Murray made a terrific save at the 14:17 mark of the second half.
“Logan was impressive tonight,'' Snook said. "He came up big in moments when we really needed him.”
Topeka West will host Junction City on Thursday while Topeka High will take on city rival Shawnee Heights at the Bettis Family Sports Complex.
TOPEKA HIGH 3, TOPEKA WEST 0
Topeka High -- Goals: CJ Brown 2, Chris Gomez. Assists: Sergio Ramirez, Jamie Alvarado. Shutout: Logan Murray.
