Columbus North’s Alex McGill made his presence known in the Conference Indiana boys soccer match against Perry Meridian on Thursday night.
McGill scored or assisted on all four goals to help the Bull Dogs get the 4-1 victory.
North took a couple of days off after playing four games in four days, and coach Andy Glover said the time off is what helped his players maintain the high energy.
“I thought the team fought very hard against a really, really well prepared Perry Meridian team,” Glover said. “It’s a good conference game for us and a good physical task after a couple days off.”
The first half ended in a 1-1 tie after McGill scored a goal in the 14th minute, and Perry Meridian’s Lal Rin Mawi scored in the 34th minute. It was all Bull Dogs in the second half.
McGill assisted to Finn Anderson in the 44th minute to push the lead to 2-1 before scoring two more goals of his own. McGill scored his second unassisted goal in the 49th minute before Ernesto Perez assisted to him in the 78th minute.
“I think it’s really important for me to bring my best game,” McGill said. “Even if I’m not playing technically well, I can still motivate the other players, or you can always work hard defensively.”
McGill said North (7-4-1, 3-2) suffered multiple injuries in last weekend’s Great Midwest Classic at North Central. The Bull Dogs played their third game of the tournament with about 12 players, and McGill said if felt good to for the team to play rested and healthy again.
“The team is ready,” McGill said. “We had the longest rest, and we’re just trying to start a streak before we head into the postseason where it really matters.”
North goalkeeper Noah Kestler had eight saves on Perry Meridian’s nine shots on goal. Luciano Salemi had five saves for the Falcons (6-4-1, 4-2-1) on North’s nine shots on goal.
