Lake Orion, Oxford play to scoreless tie

OXFORD » The host Oxford Wildcats and Lake Orion Dragons played to a 0-0 draw on Tuesday night in an OAA crossover.

“I’m really proud of the way our boys played. I’m really proud of the way those guys (Lake Orion) played too. I thought it was a really good, really clean match, and I’m pretty happy with the way the young guys played too,” Oxford head coach Adam Bican said.

“These games have always been tight and a number of the games have literally come down to the last 10 seconds. This was a typical good game, up and down,” Lake Orion head coach Chris Corteg said.

The game had a back-and-forth rhythm with teams making adjustments. The Dragons’ midfield was the best unit for Lake Orion, helping the Dragons to recycle possession and create chances, particularly in the second half. Jose Eduardo Barrios Aradillas, Mihailo Janevski, and Ezekiel Bargas combined to lead the Lake Orion effort all night, and the Dragons finished the game with more shots overall and the better overall chances, coming closest just 30 seconds into the second half when they slipped into point blank range only to be denied by Oxford keeper Jack Brown.

“That’s football isn’t it, where you press, press, and you need a little luck. (If) you get one, you probably end up getting two or three,” Corteg said. “And I feel little bit feel lucky to get a point even because they (Oxford) had

some good counters, a couple dangerous corners, and we almost got caught on the counter there and we could have lost just as easily 1-0.”

Defensively the Wildcats were anchored by Jay Cady, Drew Cady, and Max Myrand, and Oxford held up well under pressure when they needed to.

“I thought Lake Orion played extremely well. They moved the ball well.” Bican said.

“I think we had some opportunities in the first half, and they had some better opportunities in the second half, but I will say that we played extremely organized and I’m pretty happy with the effort, with the work rate of all the players.”

Offensively, Oxford was at its best on the counterattack.

Those counterattacks led to a handful of good chances for the Wildcats who had more corners kicks and offensive zone free kicks as the Dragons sometimes were forced into fouls to slow down the Oxford counter.

But in the end, Wildcat keeper Jack Brown, who finished with five saves, and Lake Orion goalie Noah, Wernette, who finished with four saves, were unbeatable on the night and the game ended in a scoreless draw.

Lake Orion is now 6-2-1 overall. The Dragons have a week off before facing Warren De La Salle in a final non-league tune up before starting OAA White play against Birmingham Groves next Wednesday.

Oxford (3-4-2) plays another crossover against Rochester on Thursday before starting OAA Red play next Tuesday against North Farmington.

KEN SWART PHOTOS — FOR MEDIANEWS GROUP Oxford’s Nolan Mauser, right, intercepts the pass intended for Lake Orion’s Calvin Maes, left, in Tuesday’s game which ended in a 0-0tie.

Oxford’s Maxton Myrand, left, and Lake Orion’s Diego Savoi keep their eyes on the ball during Tuesday’s OAA Red/White crossover match. The Wildcats and Dragons played to a 0-0 draw.