The Byki Over 30s were seeking their first victory of the season last Saturday at Winnebago when they hosted Lake Shore B. But the oldboys were confounded by the wind-tunnel conditions and a Lake Shore side that outsmarted them at every turn. The result was a frustrating 4:0 pasting that ended with a squad full of grumbling Byki.

A gusting wind blew in from the southwest all day long, which made normal soccer an impossibility. Lake Shore took advantage of the wind in the first half and it helped them score two goals. The Byki enjoyed a greater portion of the possession when they had the wind at their backs in the second half, but their poor finishing prevented any kind of meaningful comeback in the match.

The Byki began the match brightly, putting together some good passing sequences and applying pressure to the Lake Shore fullbacks to keep them bottled up in their half of the field. Once Lake Shore got on the board, however, the Byki appeared to lose their way and the short, quick passes became a rarity.

Lake Shore took the lead in the 13th minute when they lofted a ball towards the goal from just inside the Byki half. Once the ball got into the jet stream, its trajectory took it past Dan Blanco. Lake Shore reprised that effort at the half-hour mark, scoring another wind-swept goal to make it 2:0.

The Byki tried to reply a couple of minutes later when they worked a smart counterattack on the right side. Jan Winter sent the ball over to Nick Elmkinssi in the center. Elmkinssi spotted Matt Treter making the supporting run to the far post and timed his pass to allow Treter to get behind the defense. With only the keeper to beat, Treter could not avoid the sliding netminder and shot the ball directly at him.

Lake Shore went three goals to the good shortly before the break. After earning a free kick just outside the box, a Lake Shore player masterfully stroked the ball over the Byki wall and into the unguarded corner of the goal.

Coach George Gorecki told his players that getting back three goals in the second half would be a difficult job, though not impossible. It would be vital for the Byki to apply constant pressure on Lake Shore and force them to deal with the wind when defending.

The Byki nearly broke through after about four minutes. Jim Jacobs switched the attack to the left side of the field to find Winter open in the penalty area. Winter was in position to shoot, but the goalie showed good anticipation to make the save. On the ensuing corner kick, Dan Jedrzejowski made a dandy cross to Jacobs, who agonizingly sent his open header wide of the target.

The ball pretty much stayed in the Lake Shore end for most of the second half, but the Byki could do little to break through. “Our squad doesn’t have an abundance of clinical finishers,” said Gorecki. “When we create the chances, we have to put them away.”

Lake Shore scored their fourth goal on the counter in the 56th minute. The Byki defense were slow to react and an open player on the right side of the area flicked the ball over the diving Blanco.

BYKI LINEUP
(4-4-2): Blanco – Tower, Geng, Pedlow, Moore – Dec, Jedrzejowski (c), Winter, Frischmann – Elmkinssi, Jacobs. Bench: Gorecki, Silverstein, Treter.

BYKI SCORING SUMMARY
None.