Brantly Gossett simply wanted the milestone goal to come quickly.
"I had no idea. I didn’t even care,” Gossett said. “I just wanted the 100th goal.”
Gossett, a senior forward at College Heights, tallied his 100th prep goal on a header during the first two minutes as the Cougars blanked Riverton 8-0 Friday in the Cavalier Soccer Classic at Thomas Jefferson.
CHC freshman Kellen Grantham had possession on the right side of the field and booted the ball toward the left side of the goal, and Gossett headed the ball into the net..
“It was just me and the keeper,” Gossett said. “I beat him to the ball and headed it in.”
Gossett added two goals in the first nine minutes of the second half, both in one-on-one situations with the goalie, giving him 23 goals for the season and 102 for his career.
“I couldn’t have even imagined. It didn’t even seem possible at all,” Gossett said. “It’s such a big number.”
Cougars coach Daniel Lewis believed Gossett would be a big scorer during Gossett’s freshman year.
“I don’t know about 100 goals,” Lewis said. “I was fairly confident he would break Joe Cales’ career record (81 goals from 2001-04). He scored 16 goals his freshman year and Joe only scored seven. It looked pretty likely at that point.”
Gossett tallied 16 goals as a freshman, 28 as a sophomore and 35 last season, one shy of Cales’ single-season mark. Gossett passed Cales’ career record in the first game this season.
“It’s a combination of things,” Lewis said. “He has great ball skills. He has good speed, and he has a knack for being in the right place at the right time.
“He also has some good guys feeding him. Josiah Braeckel and Dalton Zarrabi are good passers and help him find the net.
“It’s not a one-man show. Dalton had 27 or 28 goals last year, and he had a hat trick three games ago. Brantly has been the leading scorer each year, but we have others who certainly contribute.”
Gossett started playing soccer when he was 5.
“I just kept playing it and kept playing it,” Gossett said. “I was good at it, and I really enjoyed it, so I just kept with it.”
Entering high school, “I just wanted to be a good player and play up to the 18-year olds who were out there,” Gossett said.
Zarrabi scored two first-half goals and Grantham, Braeckel and Ryan Cummins added one apiece as the Cougars opened a 6-0 halftime lead over Riverton.
“That was one of the best games we played this year,” Lewis said. “I thought we moved the ball extremely well. We worked hard at following the game plan, which was to take it outside, spread the defense and then going back up and attacking the middle. We did that better today than in any game this year.”
Aurora 4, Thomas Jefferson 3
The Houn’ Dawgs’ Manuel Reyes’ scored with seven minutes remaining to break a 3-3 tie in the opening game of the Cavalier Soccer Classic.
Aurora led 3-1 early in the second half before Thomas Jefferson’s Alex Renfro scored at the 35-minute mark and again 12 minutes later for the tie.
Noah Wells’ goal gave the Cavaliers a 1-0 lead before goals by Tristan Swain and Rigoberto Morfin put Aurora head 2-1 at the intermission.
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College Heights' Brantly Gossett (right) works past Riverton's Brayden Sullivan during Friday's game in the Thomas Jefferson Cavalier Soccer Classic.
Discussion
September 15, 2012
Gossett scores 100th career goal for Cougars
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Large-school state track and field competition begins today
Globe File Carl Junction's Alex McMullen (left), pictured during the district track meet on May 11, is part of the Bulldogs' 4x400 relay team that has qualified for the Class 3 state meet in Jefferson City.
Shane Williams of Mount Vernon is among the favorites in three events at the MSHSAA Class 3 Track and Field Championships on Friday and Saturday at Dwight Reed Stadium in Jefferson City.
Continued ... - 2 Lions earn All-American track honors
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