Photo by Kim North Wheeling Park’s Aiden McCroskey (16) crashes the net as Hurricane goalkeeper Seth Casto leaps high to grab a shot during Saturday’s boys’ soccer action at Wheeling Island Stadium. The visiting Redskins posted a 1-0 victory.

WHEELING – When two very good soccer teams get together, don’t expect much scoring. That pretty much summed up Saturday’s match between two of the top boys’ teams in West Virginia’s biggest division.

Visiting Hurricane (6-1) scored the match’s lone goal in the 44th minute in posting a 1-0 triumph over Wheeling Park (4-3) at overcast Wheeling Island Stadium. The Patriots were making their home debut.

Senior Landon Stonestreet curved a corner kick past the Patriots’ Cooper Abraham for the only scoring. It was only the second shot on goal for the Redskins, whose lone loss came to Beckley Woodrow Wilson.

“We could’ ve defended it better,” Wheeling Park head coach Mario Julian said of the corner kick goal.

Wheeling Park, which had won four straight after a pair of season-opening setbacks in Pennsylvania, dominated much of the first-half action, putting six shots on goal against Seth Casto, but were not able to tickle the twine.

“I thought we came out and played really good soccer,” Julian said. “We had a couple of opportunities but their goalie made a couple big saves. We had a lot of ball possession in the first half.”

Hurricane flipped the script after a scoreless first 40 minutes. The visitors fired seven shots at Abraham, who made several leaping saves in traffic.

“They got that early goal in the second half and that allowed them to drop a couple more defenders back and made it difficult for us to play our game,” Julian added. “We are going to go back to practice and continue to get better.

The Patriots, meanwhile, recorded just one shot on goal in the second half, but had several sail over top of the cage.

Wheeling Park’s best chance at scoring came in the 13th minute when Wilson Hanna’s point-blank blast from straight on clanked off the crossbar and bounced out of harm’s way. The Patriots also had an opportunity in the 50th minute but Dani Brazal Morcillo’s shot from the middle of the box was blocked before it got to the net.

“My kids played hard until the very end,” Julian stressed. “I think it was a pretty even match.”

Wheeling Park remains at home Thursday as University High invades Island Stadium.

Abraham finished with six saves. Casto recorded five.

According to Julian, Hurricane was No. 1 in Class 4A in the Mountain State, with Wheeling Park No. 2. However, Beckley Woodrow Wilson will probably take over the top spot after it plays enough matches to qualify.