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The Columbus Cardinals defeated the Rice Raiders 8-0 on Tuesday, Jan. 30, on their home field for their third district win of the season.
The score reflects just how in control of this game the Cardinals were and they savored it even more because it was a district win.
The Cardinals were led by Mario Rubio, Thomas Elias, Joel Rubio and Jesus Mendoza. All four of those players recorded three or more points in the contest and contributed largely to establishing an early lead.
The duo of Mario Rubio and Elias contributed five goals Tuesday night as helped the Cardinals carry a large lead into halftime. After halftime the team played a little more conservatively and defensively.
This approach paid off for the Cardinals because the Raiders struggled to find any offense against such a stout defense. The Cardinals snuffed out every opportunity the Raiders had to end the shutout but were unsuccessful.
Cardinals’ goalkeeper Giovanni Martinez covered every inch of the net when shots came his way. The Raiders tested the Cardinals’ goalkeeper with several good looks at the net but could not find an opening.
The defense worked perfectly with Martinez in the second half forcing the Raiders to take low-percentage shots that Martinez could scoop up easily and give his strikers the ball.
The Cardinals scored a couple of more goals in the second half to tighten their grip on the game. As the time dwindled, the Cardinals continued to shut down the field and secure their third district victory of the season.
Things for the Cardinals are set to ramp up as they venture further into their district schedule. They know these early district games are important and are making sure they are taking care of business now, so they don’t have to scramble for a spot later.
The Cardinals now look ahead to their next district games against Bay City on Tuesday, Feb. 6, and against Calhoun on Friday, Feb. 9, looking to keep their momentum going.
