The Sailors showed their class from the opening whistle, scoring nine minutes into the match and controlling proceedings from start to finish in a 10-0 victory over the winless Bobcats Monday night.

Head coach Stacy Galema bemoaned the way the Bobcats started the game.

“It was definitely a slow start,” Galema said. “Once that first goal went in, I think some of the girls kind of dropped their heads a little bit. It’s definitely a tough season for them and it’s tough to see them do that, but a lot of it is just, they’ve got to find a way to lift each other up on the field.”

The Sailors (9-0) opened the scoring nearly 10 minutes in and then followed it up with the second goal, scored less than two minutes later by Nikayla Youngblut on a quick counter.

T-R PHOTO BY NOAH ROHLFING - Marshalltown freshman Irais Buenrostro (4) tries to protect the ball from Olivia Surma of Waterloo Columbus during Monday’s soccer match at Leonard Cole Field.

Marshalltown (0-9) was often left chasing its opponents in the final third, as the offside trap the Bobcats attempted to implement against the speed of Columbus Catholic was hard to get just right. Part of the inconsistency with the trap’s success is the relative inconsistency and inexperience present in the back line. The Bobcats have not been able to have the same back four for more than a game or two at a time, and with players out due to injury and other conflicts (Sara Huffman was at girls’ track and field Monday and was unable to play) it was left to young players to fill the void.

Adrianna Gallen scored the first of her three goals nearly halfway through the first half to put the lead at 3-0 for the Sailors. Gallen then added a second, before Kayla Koch tucked the ball into the bottom right corner with 11 minutes left in the half. The halftime score was 6-0 in favor of the Sailors.

Galema said the youthfulness and the lack of continuity has been an issue at the back.

“Youth is definitely a huge thing, I have to remind myself and the other coaches all the time that some of these kids are 14 years old going up against 18 or 19-year-olds,” Galema said. “They don’t have the experience for one but they don’t have the endurance or strength to keep up, especially for 40 minute halves.”

The second half was difficult for Marshalltown, as the Sailors were relentless in their attacking intent and scored the final four goals of the game in the first 20 minutes of the second half, ending the game due to the 10-goal rule.

T-R PHOTO BY NOAH ROHLFING

But despite the frustration of a heavy defeat, one bright light in the game was forward Irais Buenrostro, who has been getting more playing time over the past two weeks as the Bobcats’ most advanced player up the field.

Galema said the freshman has more natural attacking instincts than a lot of the Bobcats, and praised her encouraging signs when attempting to hold up the ball and start attacking moves.

“We play with four and with two in front of them,” Galema said. “So we gotta give time for our mids to get up and our outside defenders to get up, and sometimes we don’t do that well. Irais, she’s done well at trying to maintain and take it to the outside and not necessarily go straight back and into their mids.”

The Bobcats have no time to look back on the defeat — they host Mason City at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.

T-R PHOTO BY NOAH ROHLFING