Tag: Longmeadow
Oliver Ames Outlasts Longmeadow For Spot In Semis
NORTH EASTON, Mass. — Throughout a dominant regular season, the Oliver Ames boys soccer team didn’t have to play from behind very often.
So it was a bit of an unfamiliar scenario when visiting Longmeadow took the lead less than five minutes into the Division 2 state quarterfinal matchup at Muscato Stadium on Sunday night.
But there was no panic in the young Tigers, who equalized less than five minutes late, took the lead before halftime, added a key insurance goal early in the second half, and then held off a last-ditch push from the Lancers for a 3-2 win.
The win moves top-seeded Oliver Ames into the D2 state semifinals against #12 Plymouth North.
“We were prepared, we don’t talk about it a lot but we talked about if we go down early to just bounce back and keep playing,” said Oliver Ames head coach John Barata. “The bounce back was superb. We could have had one or two more in the first half and the game would have been over but this is the playoffs, and nothing is going to be easy.
“I think playing the games against Concord-Carlisle and Needham, we went down and had to come back in those. It’s hard to judge the value of those games but I feel those games helped us in this situation against a dynamite team. I give [Longmeadow] credit, they were a fantastic team.”
Barata and the Tigers were wary of the Lancers’ long throws and for good reason. Longmeadow cashed in in the fourth minute of action, using a long throw into the area. It was initially headed down, and the follow-up bid was blocked but it went to the foot of Ronald Lin and his low shot found its way through traffic and in to make it 1-0 early.
Even though the Tigers only start two seniors, and had just one more come off the bench, the hosts stayed composed and came right back at the Lancers.
Three minutes later, a service from outside back junior Diego Rivera was partially cleared by Longmeadow but only as far as junior Ryan Linhares, who quickly put a shot/cross back into the area. The ball deflected off a defender at the back post and right to sophomore Andrew Martins. Martins latched onto the bounce with the outside of his right foot and his low shot found the back of the net to make it 1-1.
“We reacted really well after they scored, we just kept pushing,” Martins said. We knew [the long throw] was coming but we just had to bounce back…the underclassmen, we’ve all been playing together for a long time so we have a lot of chemistry.”
OA had a good chance at taking the lead in the 28th minute when Mirray Dasilva earned a penalty kick after being taken down by a defender. A long ball from Luke Churchill was tapped on by Linhares, and Dasilva used his speed to get to the ball first, getting a touch before the goalie’s slide.
A yellow forced the keeper to the sideline but OA’s penalty kick bid was denied by Joseph Tranghese as the Lancers seized the momentum.
But it didn’t last long. The Tigers kept the pressure on and took their first lead three minutes later. A header from center back Hector Bucio found Linhares, who carried up the left flank. He left it for sophomore Casey Milliken and he dropped a perfectly weighted ball over the top of the defense. Martin sprinted onto it and hit a shot on the slide that clanked off the crossbar. He quickly got back to his feet and headed in the rebound into the open net to make it 2-1 in the 31st minute.
“He’s been great for us all year but everyone focuses on Casey, and Casey is great but Andrew was our second-leading scorer and one of the top scorers in the league,” Barata said. “Casey’s movement opens a lot of opportunity for others but Martins is a baller, a great finisher.”
Oliver Ames had a bright start to the second half to extend their lead. Rivera looped a ball forward down the right flank that was tracked down by junior Joey Carney. Carney used a nice touch to cut past the defender and set himself up on his left, and his low blast skipped past the keeper and just inside the far post for a 3-1 lead in the 44th minute.
Sophomore Drew Hall made a key save just minutes later. Longmeadow had a dangerous free kick just outside the box from Frederic Koran but it was knocked down by Craig Churchill in the wall. The rebound fell to Lin but his bouncing shot was parried away by a diving stop by Hall.
The Lancers didn’t have too many ventures into the attacking third but cashed in on one of their few corner kick chances. Christopher Koran curled in a corner that Braden Costas rose up and nodded in to cut the deficit to 3-2.
Hall came up with a big save in the 74th minute on a shot from Chris Koran, and then OA survived a long throw in chance in the 77th minute after a big clearance from Rivera.
In the final seconds, Christopher Koran flicked in a ball behind the defense with Frederic Koran racing onto it but Hall came off his line and scooped it up and OA held on for the win.
“It took a lot [defensively],” Barata said. “The challenge of getting the wind in the second half was a disaster in this game against a team of that quality to send the ball like they can. What a save by Drew at the end, coming out to hold his ground.
“This is a young group so this is great to get to this point in the tournament.”
Oliver Ames (18-1-2) will square off with #12 Plymouth North (15-3-3) on Wednesday at 6:00 at Marshfield High School.
Boys Lacrosse Photos: Franklin vs. Longmeadow
Civetti Sets Record and Franklin Routs Longmeadow
Although it had been a running clock throughout the fourth quarter, there was still just enough time for a little history. In the final minute of a game that had long been decided, Franklin raced the ball up the right wing and immediately looked to find senior attacker Eric Civetti. He got it outside the crease on the left side and drove to the cage.
This wasn’t about the Panthers trying to run up the score, but to give the program’s all-time leading scorer the opportunity to set another record with his ninth goal of the game. Twice, Civetti had tied the record with eight in a game, but now he stands alone.
Even more important for Franklin was that the nine goals were part of a dominating 22-8 victory on Sunday afternoon against Longmeadow, one of the top-ranked teams in the state. This was the third time this week that the Panthers had scored 20-plus goals in a game. The first two were against a pair of the state’s newest programs (Taunton and Stoughton) and on Sunday it came against one of the state’s best.
“I was so afraid of this because of those two games and I’m just amazed,” said Franklin coach Lou Verrochi. “I’m blown away by the fact that we beat them the way we did. All the stars were aligned. It was just an incredible win. The kids played their butts off.”
The spotlight was rightfully on Civetti after the game. He scored four times in the opening quarter, as the Panthers jumped out to an 8-0 lead, and had seven goals by halftime, including his by now trademark around-the-defender’s-shoulder, no-look shot while backed up on the edge of the crease. He scored again to start the second half and then finished the game with one last goal in the closing seconds for the record.
“I didn’t think we were really going to get much of a chance at the end of the game,” Civetti said of the ninth goal, “but I’ve got great teammates and they always give me great opportunities to score.”
He added, “We were prepared. We knew we had to come out fast and that’s exactly what we did. The beginning of the year, we had a few problems on offense we had to work out. I think today was one of those games where we really built our confidence. We made sure we knew we can play with teams like this.”
Verrochi said of Civetti, “He can create his own offense. He’s been able to do it for four years now. He’s just an outstanding player and to do it against them was huge because defensively I thought they were very good, he just had a great game. He gets up for big games like this.”
It had been a difficult start to the season for the Panthers outside of league play. While Franklin is on the brink of another Kelley-Rex division title, the Panthers had struggled offensively against non-league opponents like BC High and Walpole and were in need of a marquee win on their resume.
While the offense will get the plaudits, the Franklin defense also stood tall against the powerful Longmeadow attack, Jack McGrath was tenacious with his close marking and O’Rourke made 14 saves, consistently coming up with big stops to stem the Lancers’ momentum and with accurate outlet passes that got the Panthers going in transition.
“He was solid,” said Verocchi of O’Rourke. “He always is. He deserves some All-American recognition.”
Civetti opened the scoring five minutes into the game and, following one of O’Rourke’s big saves, he then made a perfect pass from behind the cage to set up Zach Alexander in front. Chase Tanner rifled in Franklin’s third and Civetti spun a defender into the ground before finishing in close.
The Panthers were rolling and turned a big stick check from Trevor Raffin into a transition opportunity. LSM Patrick Morrison and Jake Davis played a give-and-go that left Morrison open for the fifth goal. Freshman Matt Lazzaro got his first with a rip to the corner, Civetti cleaned up the rebound of a Tanner shot, and then Civetti was given all day to wind up and fire.
Longmeadow scored at the buzzer to close out the first quarter but it was already 8-1.
“I think this was our best game offensively,” said Civetti. “We finally got clicking. It’s nice because you don’t have to rely on one-on-one. Whether it’s middie or attack, we’re all clicking.”
Jacob Alexander had controlled the face-off ‘X’ against one of the state’s premier face-off guys, but the Lancers started to win a few in the second quarter and started to cut into the lead. Civetti made it 9-1 but the visitors scored back-to-back goals before Tanner went low angle with a shot from distance through a crowd of legs. Civetti would score twice more before the half but the Lancers scored three and it was 12-6 at the break.
The thought of a comeback was ended in the first three minutes of the third quarter. O’Rourke intercepted a long pass and quickly started Franklin’s break with Davis feeding Civetti for his seventh of the afternoon. Nitin Chaudhury scored with a bouncing shot after racing straight down the middle of the field and 17 seconds later Jacob Alexander finished off a quick break from Sean Lazzaro’s pass.
After a pair of huge saves from O’Rourke while Longmeadow was man-up, Chaudhury set up Will Harvey for a goal and a 16-7 lead. Civetti again played provider on the next goal, picking out a cutting Matt Lazarro, who took the pass on the run and in one motion went behind his back to the top corner.
Davis tacked on two more, including a missile to the top corner at the buzzer and Franklin went into the final quarter with a 19-7 lead. Kyle McEniry (from Chaudhury) and another rocket from Davis (three goals and four assists) pushed the Panthers’ lead to as many as 14 (21-7).
“We put a few new things in and geez it worked to perfection,” said Verrochi. “In my wildest dreams I wouldn’t have expected to beat Longmeadow the way we did. To have running time in the fourth quarter against Longmeadow, I don’t think that’s ever happened.”
Franklin (11-2, 9-0) will get back into league play on Wednesday night against Oliver Ames and can clinch at least a share of a sixth straight Kelley-Rex division title.