Wildcats Dominate Bobcats in Second Bout

Brewster Academy 9/28/22 Home JV1

 

    It was Ebby Calvin “Nuke” LaLoosh, from Ron Shelton’s 1988 classic Bull Durham, who summed it up best:

 

“I love winning man!  I love winning.  You know what I’m saying?  It’s like better than losing.”

 

    This was the feeling shared by our boys as they walked off the field on Wednesday.

 

    The day was, again, gorgeous and perfect for playing soccer.  It was the second time in just over a week that we were facing off against the same, strong Brewster squad.  We were hoping that the bus lag would work in our favor, but, within the first minute and a half of play, there seemed little difference in spirit and drive between the Bobcats and us.  But then Finn Bunk gained control of the ball before passing it off to Ian Surgenor.  Ian chipped a cross over to Alvaro Campos who blasted a shot that just barely missed the top corner.  This was a good sign for us; it showed confidence and determination.

 

    Five minutes later the same trio attempt the same more, but this time they had experience behind them.  This time Alvaro reeled in some of his earlier enthusiasm and was able to skillfully place the ball into the net by the far post.  We were on the board.  A minute later Finn sent another pass up to Alvaro, but this time the goal keeper was able to rush in and take the ball away.  Five minutes later Dan Pimentel and Will Sewell tried their luck, but again the keeper was able to dive in and snag the ball.

 

    Then with twenty-five minutes left, Brewster was able to get behind our defenders and up close to Bleyton Hopps-Thompson.  Bleyton dove for it, but the Brewster striker blasted it in to tie up the game.  However, our boys were undaunted and took up the challenge of putting another ball in the net before the half ended.  A minute later Simon Nowlan received the ball as he entered the first third of Brewster’s defensive end.  He quickly deked one player and then blasted the ball high and targeted on the far top corner of the goal, and it went in.  It was a beautiful shot and well received by our boys.  Simon continued to play one of his best games with hustle and quick passes.

 

    Although we saw more offensive drives from Matt Fussteig, Devon LaBlanc, and Dan over the next minutes, our defensive end was getting visited more frequently.  Full backs Aiden Bean, Jacob Hebbel, Michael Jung, and Angus Spence were busy shutting down drives and thwarting attempts of getting in too close.  Shots were fired and Bleyton was busy making many saves.

 

    Then with six minutes left, two Brewster strikers were in close.  A quick give-and-go and a shot earned them another tying goal.  But then, with one minute left, Ian took a direct kick from outside the box.  The shot was deflected into play and Ryder Perry was able get control and send a finesse shot where the keeper wasn’t to put us back up on top.  With fifteen second left in the period, Alvaro took one last shot on net, and what a shot it was.  He mimicked the long shot that Simon had put in earlier, but his, unfortunately, just hit the top bar and went out.  When the halftime whistle blew, we were up 3-2.

 

    The action in the second half was just as exciting.  My notes were quick and brief because the pace of the match was so fast:

  4 min in – Brew in close – Bleyton deflects

  6 min in – Simon to Will to Dan – shot saved

  12 min in – Brew shot – wide

  14 min in – Mikey(Winham) to Dan – shot saved

  15 min in – Aiden from ¾ field – shot just wide

  15 min in – Matt to Ian – shot wide

  17 min in – Adi(Lesbek) to Alvaro – shot saved

 

    Meanwhile, we saw strong midfield plays by Cho Man Bian, Leo Barta, and Tom Huang.  Eric Chung proved his meddle on defense against a wicked fast Brewster forward.

 

  17 min left – Direct kick top of box – Bleyton saves

  16 min left – Brew long shot – save

  12 min left – Direct kick top of box – Alvaro sends it way over the net

  11 min left – Melee in front of net – Simon left foot to Alvaro – deflect.  Simon right foot to Finn – Keeper saves

  10 min left – Direct kick – Bleyton saves

  9 min left – Ian in close – shot high

  8 min left – Finn nice run – 1 on 1 – shot saved

  8 min left – Devon to Ryder to Alvaro – keeper saves

 

    Then with only six minutes left in the match.  Finn took control of the ball and moved down the field through the defense.  The goal keeper attacked him, but at the last second, he was able to pass a dribbler to Ian, who sent the ball into the back of the net.

 

  3:45 min left – Ryder chips a cross to Simon who heads it to Matt who heads it – keeper save

  2 min left – Brew in close – Bleyton diving save

  1 min left – Ryder out wide.  Sends it to Simon – keeper deflects over net.

  Seconds left – Corner kick – melee – repelled by Brewster, but KUA keeping pressure on .

 

    When the final whistle was heard we knew we had won a well-played match against a skilled team.

 

  This Saturday we face off against Cushing Academy home at 3:30.