Seymour’s boys soccer team celebrated Senior Night with a bounce-back 5-0 victory over Madison on Thursday night.

Two days after suffering a difficult 2-1 defeat to Floyd Central, the Owls (7-5) used four second-half goals to ensure Thursday’s match ended on a happier note.

Nine seniors were feted before kickoff, many of whom were part of the Owls’ second-half surge. David Bartolome, Myles Chandler, Kayden Cox, Thai Daraswad, Donovan Delgadillo, Daniel Diego, Juan Fernandez, Lance Hubbard and Jake Loebker composed this year’s senior class.

Seymour head coach Matt Dennis said this group of seniors is a little closer to his heart because they often shared soccer fields with his son, current junior Dominic, as they grew up.

“I coached these boys a lot throughout their early years,” Dennis said. “I don’t know that I’ve had a senior class that I’ve known for this long. They mean so much to me and the program. We’re going to miss them, but I hope we don’t end our season too quickly. I’m hoping that we get to enjoy their presence for many more games.”

If the Owls’ effort in the second half against Madison (6-2-1) is any indication, the season may indeed be extended once the postseason starts.

After earning a hard-fought 1-0 lead in the first half, on a pretty shot by Bartolome Sebastian that travelled over Madison goalkeeper Graham Klein and nestled in the far upper corner, Seymour’s speed and creativity got the better of the Cubs as the game wore on.

Fifteen minutes into the second half, Marckenson Paul won the ball 10 yards outside of Madison’s penalty area and fed Chandler just inside the 18-yard line. Chandler one-touched Paul’s pass and beat Klein to the far post to double Seymour’s lead.

Eight minutes later, Paul headed a free ball forward and beat three Madison defenders as they raced into the Cubs’ penalty box. Paul tapped the ball past Klein and the Owls’ advantage grew to 3-0.

Chandler struck again less than three minutes later after a long entry pass by Loebker. Chandler beat Madison’s defense to the ball and scored off the right post.

With less than two minutes left in the game, a well-placed pass by Fernandez created an opportunity for Cox, who sped past the defense and scored the night cap.

“The first half was rocky, but credit to Madison,” Dennis said. “They were difficult to play against and well-organized defensively. It took us a minute to figure out how we were going to break them down. We talked at halftime and saw four goals. Three of them came from stuff that we talked about at halftime. That’s nice for a coach to see.”

Loebker said the Owls’ strong second-half play, much of it driven by the seniors, was the product of familiarity.

“We’ve been together for so long. It’s like we’ve known each other for all our lives,” Loebker said. “It’s cool to see that, to see our growth. We’ve been together for ten years plus. It definitely helps us. (Combination play) is always better whenever you know each other. Communication is always going to be better when you are a unit, you’re one team.”

With four regular-season games remaining, Loebker said the Jennings County Sectional, which starts on Oct. 7, is looming large for the Owls. The recent defeat to Floyd Central is also at the forefront on their minds.

“Everything is leaning towards Floyd,” he said. “We know it’s going to be Floyd again, so we’ve got to get ready for them.”

Seymour 5, Madison 0

Scoring

First half

S-Bartolome Sebastian, 31:55

Second half

S-Myles Chandler (Marckenson Paul), 25:20

S-Paul, 16:49

S-Chandler (Jake Loebker), 14:19

S-Kayden Cox (Juan Fernandez), 1:37

Statistics

Shots: Madison 2, Seymour 23

Saves: Madison 8, Seymour 0

Fouls: Madison 8, Seymour 7

Corners: Madison 0, Seymour 6

Varsity record: 7-5-0

JUNIOR VARSITY

Seymour 0, Madison 0

JV record: 3-5-3