By Cort Reynolds

VAN BUREN __ The Ada High School boys soccer team lost 6-1 at unbeaten Van Buren in the North Central Ohio Soccer Association opener Thursday evening, September 5.

The Bulldogs were playing their first road match after their initial five games were played on the fast turf of Ada War Memorial Stadium. It was also their first game in eight days after knocking off state-ranked Miller City, 3-2.

Ada dropped to 4-2 overall and 0-1 in NCOSA play with the defeat. The Black Knights improved to 6-0 overall and 1-0 in the NCOSA after the win. 

“The boys fought hard,” said AHS first-year head coach Aaron Acheson. “You have to give a lot of credit to Van Buren. They are a really good team. They win balls out of the air. 

“They do a great job of moving the ball from side to side and send through balls in the gaps between lines,” he continued. “They crash the goal and have a desire to score. They put constant pressure on the ball. We will learn a lot from this game.”

VB scored five minutes into the contest to go ahead 1-0 early. 

Ada tied it 1-1 on an Andrew Allen give-and-go goal off senior Logan Jolliff’s assist with 10 minutes left in the opening half.

The Black Knights tallied again with three minutes to go before intermission and took a 2-1 lead into halftime.

VB then outscored Ada 4-0 in the second half to win going away. The Knights went ahead 3-1 on a penalty kick with 29 minutes left to play.

The hosts then scored with 14 minutes remaining to build the lead to 4-1. Another Knight goal four minutes later extended their margin to 5-1.

VB added a final goal with one minute left to close the scoring.

Ada keeper Jacob Rush was credited with 14 saves in goal.

“Jacob played great for us in goal,” said Acheson. “He works hard and has a great attitude. He is getting better all the time. 

“We will review things and turn the page quickly,” he noted.  

Ada hosts Putnam County League foe Ft. Jennings (2-3) in a JV/varsity doubleheader on Monday, September 9.