The Red Bank boys' soccer team had plenty of opportunities to give itself a cushion Tuesday night, but in the end an early goal was enough for a 1-0 home win over District 6-A/AA foe Hixson.
An intentional handball in the box gave the Lions a penalty kick early in the first half, as the teams jostled for momentum. Sandi Beganovic stroked it confidently past a diving keeper to net what turned out to be the game's only goal.
It was a timely strike for Red Bank, as after a fast start that led to three early shots, possession began to elude both teams. The Lions were able to put continuous pressure on Hixson but could not put the game out of reach.
That opened the door for the Wildcats, who had several good looks at the end of the first half.
"It wasn't pretty by any means, but sometimes you do enough to get the 'W,'" Red Bank coach Wade Ilvento said. "Hixson did a good job of closing us down in the box. It was a hard-fought game, really."
Beganovic helped orchestrate the aggressive Lions offense, often weaving by defenders and offering accurate passes to lead the attack forward down the sidelines, which helped translate to 15 shots - nine before the halftime whistle sounded.
"Home field was big for us," Ilvento said. "We have a big, flat, fast field, which is how we like to play."
Hixson racked up 12 shots to try to equalize, with most coming in the second half. Micah Robinson delivered several of them, often with headers off sharp entry passes from Cameron Rigler.
The Lions defense was able to kick trouble away to the sidelines, and goalkeeper Will Davis kept the clean slate.
"The defense was sufficient," Ilvento said. "They made the necessary plays, and that's kind of how it's been all year. They are a tight-knit group, and I think they held shape a lot better than against East Ridge."
Hixson keeper Danny Payton was also heavily involved, bravely chasing after potentially dangerous balls in front of the goal and drawing hard contact twice. After being down briefly in the second half, Payton was able to shake off the collision and finish strong.
As expected in a tightly contested district matchup, tempers started to flare and words were exchanged. Although several yellow cards made an appearance, both teams were able to let their play settle things.
Contact Idris Garcia at sports@timesfreepress.com.