TERRIERS CONTINUE LOCAL SPELL

Take heart local high school soccer teams, you're not the only ones.

Carbondale Community High's Terriers have bullied Cape Girardeau Central, Notre Dame and Jackson this season. The Terriers' 1-0 win against Central at Lou Muegge Field on Tuesday upped their record to 5-0 this year against the area triumvirate.

But Carbondale has also played well outside the cozy confines of southeast Missouri: the Terriers are 11-2 overall and have allowed just six goals this season, or about one every other game, while scoring over 50 times.

The Terriers have beaten both Central and Notre Dame twice and Jackson once.

"We have had success," said Carbondale coach Dan Frazier. "The boys are playing well right now; they've had a very good season so far. It's (our) defense, clearly, but everything seems to be working overall for us."

On Tuesday, two minutes into the second half, the Terriers' Patrick Attmore received a pass from the right side in front of the goal and scored easily.

"We (broke) down defensively," said Central coach Tom Doyle.

Carbondale's Kelly Steinmetz gained the shutout in goal.

While Carbondale's defense has dominated, Central (3-9-2) has struggled on offense this year -- which proved not a good combination for the Tigers.

Central has scored just 17 goals in 14 games. Take away the Tigers' two best offensive matches, and they've scored only 10 goals in 12 games.

"It's frustrating for me; it's frustrating for the kids," said Doyle. "They're good soccer players, but we're just not making the right decisions.

"There are times when we'll go great guns for five (or) ten minutes, and then it seems like we go into lackluster for 15 or 20 minutes and we're out there just kicking the ball around. It's hard to tell why."

Said Frazier: "(Central) looks like they have some guys that can put the ball away; I guess they just didn't have the luck today to do it."

Central, which has won five successive district titles, will have to increase its luck to finish .500 -- the Tigers must win nine of their next 12 games. Central will host Poplar Bluff Thursday at Lou Muegge Field.

In the JV game, Carbondale beat Central 4-0. The JV Tigers dropped to 1-4.