CLEVELAND, Tenn. -- For the Cleveland High School soccer team, it was a tale of two halves.
Depth and ball movement fueled a sparkling second half for the Blue Raiders, turning an early deficit into a 4-2 home win over the Walker Valley Mustangs in District 5-AAA action Tuesday.
Kameron Dunn and Chris Pistrang led the charge, combining to score all four Cleveland goals -- three in the second half. Dunn netted a hat trick, with Pistrang assisting on the third goal.
"Those guys played really well tonight," said Raiders coach John Brose, who celebrated his 100th victory. "Chris just showed relentless effort and tenacity, and Kameron had an unbelievable finish (for his third goal)."
Walker Valley scored the game's first two goals, coming out with intensity behind Sam Gibson and Jake Poulakis, who gave the Mustangs the early lead. However, after Dunn cut the lead to 2-1 before halftime, it was all Cleveland.
"Depth," Walker Valley coach Tom Bayliss said as to what led to the turnaround. "We were dropping like flies. We had three or four guys cramping at a time."
The Raiders started to build possession, putting pressure on the Mustangs defense. Dunn started the scoring in the second half, slipping one into the lower left corner with about 28 minutes to play.
Just over three minutes later, the hosts took their first lead of the night when Delwin Lopez launched a long clearance over midfield. Pistrang sprinted and sliced through defenders to get to it and lob it over the keeper.
"We're a deeper team, so we were able to sub a lot," Brose said. "We told them if they kept possessing the ball, they would find gaps in the defense. Moving the ball side to side, and getting (the Mustangs) moving, we could kind of wear them out."
Dunn flipped Pistrang's cross into the net while battling a defender for possession to ice the game, as Mustangs players were visibly fatigued, stretching cramps.
"My starters know I expect them to go 80 minutes," Bayliss said. "It's more than just physical toughness; it's about mental toughness, too."
The Mustangs did not threaten much in the second half but launched a few free kicks just wide of the goal. Their best chance came with three minutes to play, as the ball fell on the right side of the penalty box and two Mustangs converged on it. Cleveland's keeper, however was able to get in the waym and the ensuing corner was dealt with.
"We were a lot more disciplined in the second half," Brose said. "We won more 50-50 balls we didn't get in the first half, and we communicated better."
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com.