Heitkamp scores twice in win

One of the biggest questions going into the season for the Patriots was trying to replace Alex Abbott.
The speedster had 20 goals as a senior.
Midway through the season, it appears as Jay County has found that player.
Nathan Heitkamp had his third multi-goal game of the season Thursday, leading the JCHS boys soccer team to a 3-0 victory against the Blackford Bruins.
“Heitkamp’s speed is just lethal at this level,” JCHS coach Adam Daniels said. “Plus, his height and athleticism is huge.
“He does everything right. He works hard every day in practice. He is just a great asset to a team like this.”
Heitkamp, a senior, put the Patriots (4-3) on the board in the 10th minute by being in the right place at the right time.
After Heitkamp’s first shot of the night missed wide, Blackford keeper Charlie Cranston sent a goal kick toward the left side of midfield. There, sophomore Angel Perez headed the ball back in the JCHS offensive zone.  Heitkamp weaved through the left side of the Bruin defense to get to the ball and found an opening in the far side of the net.
Nearly 25 minutes later — after both teams had a handful of chances — Heitkamp benefited from a little bit of luck to net his second score.
Junior Brent Englehardt sent a pass from the Patriots’ defensive side of midfield that went through the legs of a Blackford player directly to Heitkamp. The senior then raced past the defense of Blackford (0-7), dribbled into the right side of the 18-yard box and sent a right-footed shot past Cranston for the goal. It was his team-leading seventh goal of the season.
Not even three minutes into the second half, freshman Daniel Fugiett scored his first career goal on a header from a cross pass by Colton Compton to put the Patriots up 3-0.
“He gets lost in the box constantly,” Daniels said of Fugiett, who was at the far post about 8 yards away from the goal when he leaped to connect with Compton’s cross. “He has a knack for putting his head on the ball.
“He did it all summer in practice and he finally got one in a game.”
Just as effective as Jay County’s offense was at continuing to get scoring chances, the Patriot defense was as equally efficient at keeping the Blackford opportunities to a minimum.
JCHS goalkeeper Trevor Moeller was hardly challenged.
“It feels a lot better on all of us when we keep them to zero,” said Moeller, who had two saves to record a shutout in back-to-back games. “We are definitely improving. I’m sure it’s noticeable.
“We want to win the rest of our games this year. We want to make a good run.”
The Patriots were without their best ball handler in Zach Chaney against the Bruins, but they were still able to dominate possession for a majority of the game despite the physical nature of the contest.
Daniels was happy with the way his squad was able to keep the ball away from the struggling Bruin team despite not having Chaney to drive the offense from the midfield.
Chaney, a junior, sat out with a pulled muscle, but he is expected to play Saturday against South Adams.
“It’s tough to get in the flow of the game for all of them,” Daniels said. “They don’t have the guy they can pass to and he can keep the possession for a minute while they get regrouped, get in position or make the runs off of him.
“It’s definitely a change of pace.”
Later in the second half, Jay County had a prime opportunity to extend its lead.
Heitkamp took a shot that Cranston saved — he had a dozen stops for the game — and Fugiett followed it up with a pair of shots as well. Fugiett’s first attempt smacked off the crossbar, and as he slipped behind Cranston and a host of Bruin defenders, his secondary shot went wide left.
“We work on (crashing the net) every day in practice and work on it before the game,” said Daniels, whose team hosts South Adams at noon Saturday for an Allen County Athletic Conference tilt. “A lot of it is just nerves and getting that first one to go in. After that they will start to fall.”