STORY BY ROB KISER - PIQUA DAILY CALL
It seemed like a silly question to Matt DeNise.

The Piqua boys soccer team had just recorded its first win over Troy since 1998 in impressive fashion with a 2-0 victory.

“How big is it … it’s Troy,” DeNise said. “I don’t think anybody is real sure the last time we beat them, but I know it has been a long time. So, this is a huge win for us.”

Just how long had it been since the Indians recorded a win over their rivals?

Long enough that none of the players have any memory of it.

Long enough that Scott Downing was the Piqua coach at the time.

Long enough, that the soccer teams were still sharing Wertz Stadium with the football program.

And most importantly, long enough that ending the streak was long overdue.

“To do this in our senior year,” Brian Langston and Cory Yohey said in unison. “This is huge. We have been playing against Troy for four years. To beat them and have it be in our final game against them … that is real big.”

And Piqua coach Chad Haemmerle, in just his fourth season at Piqua, understood how important it was for the Indians as well.

“We set three goals at the beginning of the year,” Haemmerle said. “And one of them was beating Troy. That’s how big this game was for us.”

The stage had been set for the Indians on Saturday, when they recorded a 7-1 win over Graham, which included a hat trick by Yohey.

“We have been working really hard,” Yohey said. “Things have been coming together. It wasn’t just that game. But, in practice. We knew things were coming together.”

The Indians improved to 4-5-1 overall and 1-1 in the GWOC North, while Troy fell to 2-6-1 and 0-1-1.

Piqua will host Oxford-Talawanda Saturday in a game not on the schedule. The JV game begins at 11 a.m., with the varsity at 1 p.m.

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