Eisenhower blanks Ford in MAC Red soccer match

Eisenhower’s Dominic Nalou often finds himself in perfect position to score goals for the Eagle soccer team.

Nalou did it again on Monday night when a deflected crossing pass from teammate Jakson Jaku ended up on his foot, and he calmly booted the ball in from eight yards out, giving Eisenhower a 1-0 lead late in the first half. It was the only goal the Eagles would need in a 2-0 MAC Red Division win over host Ford.

“Dominic’s one of those guys who is always in the right place at the right time,” Eienhower coach Josh VanHouten said. “He hunts those down and I am glad he’s producing. He’s been doing it all year.”

Nalou’s goal came with 10:03 left in the opening half against a feisty Falcon squad.

“Ford is a dangerous team and we can’t sit back and think this is an easy one,” VanHouten said. “They play a respectable schedule and have a lot of great talent out there.

Eisenhower added an insurance goal with 19:34 to play when Devin White scored off an assist by Brett Johnson.

“My kids rebounded well from Friday night (3-2 loss to Dakota),” VanHouten said. “It’s a matter of a couple things here and there. We can always get better. It’s satisfying, but there is room for improvement.”

Ford coach Chris Alston said his inexperienced Falcon squad took another positive step forward against the Eagles.

“These kids are buying in,” Alston said. “Ideally you want a season where you only have a few holes to plug, but from front to back, everyone is new. They’re slowly getting comfortable with pace; physicality and they’re adjusting. They held their own tonight. We played a solid half and now need to play a whole game.”

Eisenhower goalkeeper Evan DeJong made three saves in the shutout as the Eagles improved to 5-3-1 overall, 1-1-0 league. VanHouten praised his defense for a solid effort in front of DeJong.

“We’ve been playing great defense all year,” VanHouten said. “That’s our forte. We have some strong dynamic players who are smart back there and can knock the ball around. We build out of the back and get some offense out from there.”

Ford was led by goalie Jeremy Taras, who made nine saves in the loss.

“Jeremy is just coming back from ACL surgery and this is his second full game,” Alston said. “He’s solidified things in the back. We have two sophomores and a junior playing in the back. He gives us a lot of consistency and is a four-year varsity player.”

The loss dropped the Falcons’ record to 2-4-2 overall, 1-1-0 league. Alston said his team must improve its offensive attack.

“We have to get forward and get shots on target,” Alston said. “That’s an area we’re lacking at now and is the next piece of the puzzle."