ROCHESTER – After a blowout victory two nights earlier, Albert Lea High School boys’ soccer coach Jim Haun was concerned about a letdown Thursday at Rochester Century.

Friday, October 01, 1999

ROCHESTER – After a blowout victory two nights earlier, Albert Lea High School boys’ soccer coach Jim Haun was concerned about a letdown Thursday at Rochester Century.

He got one. But he also got a victory.

The Tigers remained atop the Big Nine by playing well enough to win, defeating the Panthers 1-0.

&uot;I was prepared for a little letdown tonight after a big win Tuesday,&uot; said Haun. &uot;And it’s always tough to play on the road, so I was a little concerned. But the guys did what they needed to do to get the win.&uot;

The win improved the Tigers to 7-3-2 overall and 7-0-2 in the Big Nine, keeping them in first place in the conference.

Haun described the game as extremely even, with the Tigers outshooting Century 9-6 in the first half and the Panthers holding the same margin in the second half.

It was 0-0 at halftime.

&uot;Both teams had chances,&uot; said Haun. &uot;There were times we moved the ball pretty well in the first half, but we didn’t have the consistency on offense that we had on Tuesday.&uot;

The Tigers’ goal came in the 15th minute of the second half.

It started in the Tigers’ zone with defender Luke Behrends, who made a strong run up the field before passing to Dan Ravenhorst, who sent a crossing pass to the far wing. From there, Paul Olsen drilled a tough shot past the Century goalie.

&uot;Paul put it in from a real tight angle,&uot; said Haun. &uot;It was a real nice shot, high over the goalkeeper to the far end of the goal.&uot;

After that the game resumed its back-and-forth pace, according to Haun, with both teams getting chances but no goals.

Albert Lea goalie Billy Jones, who made 10 saves for the game, made a couple strong saves on close-range shots in the closing minutes.

Haun said the Tigers were able to pick up the slack with a couple players injured and unable to play.

&uot;We had to patch together the lineup a little tonight,&uot; he said. &uot;It’s a game we should have won, a game we needed to win. We played well enough to win it.&uot;

The Tigers’ junior varsity lost 2-0, dropping its record to 3-5-2.

The Tigers play Saturday at Austin, with the JV scheduled for 11 a.m. and the varsity for 1 p.m.