By Jaron May, HockomockSports.com Student Reporter
WRENTHAM, Mass. – After tying Attleboro earlier in the season, King Philip knew it would need more than the one goal scored in the first half. The Warriors were able to turn it on in the second half, adding three more goals, to blank the Bombardiers, 4-0.
The Bombardiers came out strong and held the ball for most of the time in the first 20 minutes. Multiple chances opened early for Attleboro, but none ended in the back of the net. Most notably, in the 2nd minute, Ahijah Joseph streaked right up the middle of the Warrior defense and was just barely stopped at the last row of defense by a sliding Cameron Mullins.
Attleboro kept the pressure on, but the game slowly began to shift towards the other end, putting KP on the offensive. Once they got the ball rolling, KP never looked back.
KP’s first real chance came in the 12th minute when the ball was advanced into the zone and a waiting Colby Koch was ready to receive it. The Bombardiers defense came crashing in on Koch, a little too hard, and ran right into him, drawing the penalty kick. Mullins then lined up to take the ensuing penalty kick and booted it right past a diving Nicholas Hasenfus to open the scoring.
With a lone point up on the board for KP, the rest of the first half washed away with no real threats by either side.
To try to find a spark, Attleboro’s head coach Peter Pereira made a lineup change in the second half. He moved Harry Lancaster, who was previously leading the defense, to the front of the formation. This proved to be a smart decision as Lancaster helped the offensive attack for the Bombardiers.
After multiple shot attempts to open the half, the Warriors finally capitalized in the 47th minute. Tyler Mann dribbled the ball right up the gut of Attleboro’s defense and put a beautiful touch pass past the last defender right Koch. Koch then sidestepped the charging Attleboro goalie and was left we an easy tap in to double to score.
The Mann-Koch duo struck again just eight minutes later, but this time the roles were reversed. Koch, who had the ball on the wing, found Mann on a low cross, and the junior tapped it in at the far post to make it 3-0.
After the two quick goals, Attleboro tried to stop the bleeding with a time out. After the timeout, Lancaster helped put together one of Attleboro’s better looks of the game. He weaved in and out of the Warrior’s defense until he had an open shot on net but KP keeper Eli O’Neill came up with a big save.
O’Neill cleared the ball out by tossing it to Mullins, who then booted it down the field. He toed it right over the entire Attleboro defense to find Koch on the opposite end of the field. Koch took advantage and tapped in another wide open net for his second goal of the game.
With the Warriors up by four, it was a game of keep away for the last 20 minutes. KP kept up their pressure but did not get any more solid looks at the net. Attleboro did see a few more chances before the last few seconds ticked off the clock, however. The Bombardiers had two consecutive free kicks in the final three minutes of the game, but both were stopped in their tracks by KP’s defense.
“I think we moved the ball well. We created a lot of scoring opportunities; I thought that was awesome,” King Philip head coach Nick Gale said.
With the win the Warriors improve their record to 13-0-2 and keep a zero in the win column.
When asked about his team’s success Gale said, “Every game is going to be tough, everyone wants a piece of the success we are having. I try to keep these guys humble, and keep them focused on only getting better.”
The King Philip Warriors will try to stay hot as they face a true test in Oliver Ames on Wednesday. Attleboro will look to bounce back as they play host to a very talented Mansfield team on Wednesday as well.
- Franklin Scores Late To Claim First Ever Super 8 Title - 06/19/2018
- Video Highlights: Franklin Wins Super 8 Championship - 06/19/2018
- Franklin Rallies To Punch Ticket To Super 8 Final - 06/15/2018