Conant's quick start too much for Elk Grove

It didn't take long for the Conant boys soccer team to get its offense going Tuesday night.

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Ten minutes later, the Cougars added a goal by Kevin Reddington on a scramble in front of the Grenadiers' net.

"We're not going to give up 2 goals early and win," said Grens coach Joe Bush said.

Bush wasn't happy with the way his team came out to start the game, but he gave a lot of the credit to the Cougars.

"We were flat in the first few minutes," he said. "But they were organized in the back. Reddington gave us fits on the left side, (Joe) Belmonte was awesome and (Matt) Manka was everywhere."

Leading 3-1 at halftime, the Cougars kept up their pressure after intermission. At the 25-minute mark of the second half, Patel wove his way through the Grens' defense and fired a shot from the top of the box for his second goal of the game.

"I didn't expect that," said Conant coach Jason Franco about his team's season-high 5 goals. "We came to play early. If we score early like that, we usually win."

Cougars goalie Bobby Potratz, who converted from being a field player, came up with one big save after another.

The lone Grens goal came from junior midfielder Ernesto Rodgriguez. Potratz had come out of the net to save on a breakaway by Cesar Rodriguez, but Ernesto converted the rebound.

As time wound down, the Grens kept up the pressure - but Potratz held his ground.

"He was the key to keeping them at bay," Franco said.