ROCHESTER HILLS — Ryan Keener headed in his second goal of the game off a free kick by Vincent McKeoun with just over six minutes to play to give the Grand Blanc Bobcats a 2-1 win over the host Rochester Adams Highlanders in boys soccer action on Monday.

Keener's header capped a tightly contested, defensive battle.

The teams moved the ball up and down the field, but each defense was very organized and gave up very few good chances to score.

The Adams defense led by Justin Wineke, with help from their midfield. Junior Matt Szilard was able to limit the Bobcats to just a few quality scoring chances, but it wasn’t enough as the Bobcat defense led by Keener was just a little bit better.

Grand Blanc started quickly, putting a lot of pressure on Adams right away and getting a goal just four minutes into the game when Keener headed in a corner kick by McKeoun.

"I thought we started fast,” Bobcat coach Greg Kehler said. “Then got complacent and that’s credit to them (Adams). They came at us harder.”

Adams would respond, slowly taking control of the game as the first half wore on.

“We were on our heels the first 10 to 15 minutes,” Adams coach Josh Hickey noted, “It took us 20 minutes to get settled in.”

Sparked by Dylan Knott and Tom Carrio, the Highlander offense began to assert itself, consistently getting deep into Bobcat territory, only to be turned away by a well-organized defense.

The Highlanders would finally score, midway through the second half, when Knott broke free again, down the left sideline and centered a ball to Sam Suchta who slotted it home to tie the game at 1-1.

Shortly afterwards, goalkeepers Corey Cunningham for Grand Blanc and Kevin Soisson of Rochester Adams would be called on to make spectacular saves on breakaways to preserve the tie, but both were up to the challenge, keeping the game tied until Keener got free for his header late in the game.

After the game, Kehler was happy to come out of the game with a win.

“It was a big win. It’s always tough to win here against a tough Adams team,” he said. He also felt his team played pretty well overall.

“I thought we defended well and scored some timely goals,” he added.

Hickey was a little disappointed at his team’s slow start but was pleased with how they responded after the first fifteen minutes.

“They stepped it up,” he said.

The win keeps Grand Blanc unbeaten at 3-0. Adams slips to 1-1-1. The Highlanders will try to rebound Tuesday against Andover.