South Jordan • Highlights weren’t exactly in short supply for Bingham senior Leo Sobreira while the ball was in motion on Tuesday.
Take for instance the time Sobreira, sensing there was “no other option,” did a bicycle kick to reverse the ball. Or when he headed a ball straight toward the goal, only to see a teammate inadvertently deflect it out of bounds.
But Sobreira, as it turned out, was at his best when he placed the ball down for a free kick after a foul. Sobreira did it plenty of times in a region tilt against Copper Hills, from a variety of spots on the field, and converted twice as Bingham beat the Grizzlies 2-1.
“That’s Leo,” Miners coach Ahmed Bakrim said. “Always when you have that type of game, Leo will open things up for you.”
Bingham (10-1, 8-0) stayed unbeaten in Region 3, beating Copper Hills (6-4-1, 5-2) for the second time. The score this time around was the same, but — unlike the first occasion — the Miners didn’t have to go into overtime.
Sobreira scored initially in the 16th minute on a free kick from 35 yards out.
“I placed it low corner and the goalie barely missed it and it went in,” Sobreira said.
The second goal, midway through the second half, included some ricochet action as it glanced off the Grizzlies’ wall that was set up in front of Sobreira. His shot, this time from 37 yards in front of the goal, nicked off a Copper Hills defender and caught keeper Oliver Vidana Barrios going the wrong way when it deflected and went to the right side of the net.
“I just powered it and it happened to hit the wall, so I guess I got lucky,” Sobreira said. “I think it hit in the middle between two guys. It’s pretty rare — I wasn’t expecting it.”
Aggressive defensive backfield play and solid keeping duties by Bingham sophomore Zach Rothey kept Copper Hills’ chances to a minimum — particularly after the Miners got the two-goal lead. The visitors got seven shots off in the first half and then six in the second, but only three over the last 20 minutes.
But the last one, in stoppage play, was headed in by senior forward Aaron Nixon. Copper Hills also had one last opportunity, about 10 yards to the right of the Bingham goal, but failed to get a shot off as the final sequence ended with words and shoving for the combatants.
“It’s a tough loss for us, because the boys knew how important it was for us to get a win up here, we had chances to score in the first half, but they scored on the two free kicks and unfortunately it kind of took the wind out of us a little bit,” Grizzlies coach Eddie Moura said. “It got a little chippy there at the end, but I felt our boys never gave up.”
“It’s always a big game, playing against your rivals,” Sobreira said. “It always makes you come out harder.”
Bingham 2, Copper Hills 1
R Leo Sobreira scores both goals for the victorious Miners, both on free kicks abiout 35 yards from the net.
- Copper Hills’ lone tally is a header by Aaron Nixon in the extra minutes of stoppage play.