Sprinting its way to a 5-0 start, the East Syracuse Minoa boys soccer team rarely had to show the kind of patience and resolve required to get through last Monday night’s meeting with Christian Brothers Academy.
Yet that was what the game turned into as both teams played outstanding defense and rarely surrendered good opportunities – until a well-timed pass and touch from the Spartans produced a 1-0 overtime victory over the Brothers.
With only a 3-3-1 record as it reached the midway point of the regular season, CBA lacked a signature win, yet gave a strong effort as it spent most of the 80 minutes of regulation closing down the speedy Spartans’ lanes to the net.
Meanwhile, when it played defense, ESM turned to the likes of Tyler Hodge, Jared Thomas, Luke Rosaschi and Samir Buljubasic to stifle CBA’s runs. Though Alex Calkins would get some solo efforts, they rarely led to any real pressure on sophomore goalie Ryan Cacace.
Still, ESM nearly went ahead in the first half when Brothers goalie Matt Buck was out of position and Luke Garlick had an open look – only to have a kick-stop from the Brothers’ Malachi Emmanuel, who also used his strong throw-in ability to generate more chances.
When regulation ended, though, no one was surprised by the 0-0 deadlock. As overtime started, ESM probed for chances, but more importantly, remembered that, many times earlier in the game, Buck had charged far from the net to make stops before the forwards could tip the ball toward the net.
Thus, when Ado Mujcic fired another long pass from the sideline near midfield midway through the first OT, Hodge, charging toward the net, knew what to do. Just as Buck was set to catch the ball again, Hodge got a small piece of it, and on the artificial surface of Spartan Stadium it rolled all the way into the net before Buck could recover.
With a sixth consecutive win in the books, ESM looked for seven in a row Wednesday night, against Auburn,
Oswego paid a visit on Friday night, and no overtime was required as the Spartans stopped the Buccaneers 3-1 to make it seven wins in a row. Mujcic again sparked the effort, scoring a goal and adding an assist, while Hodge and James Kenyon also found the net. Kyle Scalzo contributed an assist.
Before all this, Jamesville-DeWitt attempted to begin its road to recovery last Tuesday afternoon with its own 3-1 victory over Oswego. The Red Rams scored twice in the first half, accounting for its eventual winning margin as it overcame 12 saves by Buccaneers goalie Carson Smith.
Jacob Brazie led that charge, finishing the day with two goals. Liam O’Malley had the other goal, while Ben Picone picked up two assists and Tyler Gabriel had the other assist. Tom Bonaccio had five saves, only giving up Matteo Pasquato’s second-half tally from the Bucs.
Later in the week, J-D blanked Whitesboro 2-0, with both goals coming in the first half. Brazie and Jake Socia earned those early tallies, with Picone adding another assist. Even with a fair amount of chances, the Warriors got nothing past Tom Bonaccio, who finished with seven saves.
