*** UPDATED on Sept. 25
Last Friday night under the Deering Stadium lights at Danvers (2-3-2), the Marblehead High boys soccer team (5-2-1) faced an unexpected challenge from a team that has had an uneven start to the season.
It was a game of significant and unexpected momentum shifts from the start. The Magicians started off well, and w ere able to keep the Falcons’ defense on their heels, but that changed abruptly.
Nine minutes into the game, Danvers took a direct kick from the right side that sailed across to the left of the box, before dropping at the feet of one of its attacking players. The timing was perfect, and it led to an early score for the Falcons.
A short time later, forward Ilan Druker, who has been a constant offensive threat this season, blasted a beautiful bending ball to the top right corner of the net that had no chance of being saved to tie up the proceedings.
Late in the game, Druker notched another score to give his teammates the lead, but the lead was short-lived, because the home team tied the score on a direct kick that cleared the wall of defenders, before going into the net.
But when a Danvers defender was called for a handball in the box to give the Marblehead boys a penalty kick with minutes remaining, it appeared victory was imminent. Unfortunately, the Danvers goalie made the right decision diving to his left to save his team from defeat.
The game ended in a 2-2 tie, though the final seconds were frenetic with two yellow flags called on Marblehead to surpass the one given to Danvers earlier in the game.
The Marblehead boys have since returned home to host Masco later today (Sept. 25, 4 p.m.), and then Salem two nights later on Senior Night at 7:30 p.m.
***
The Beverly High boys soccer team (4-2) rolled into Piper Field to take on the host Magicians (5-2) on Sept. 16. The Panthers were looking to assert their authority over the NEC North after an uneven start to 2024.
Coming off two straight losses, the Panthers needed a win to right the ship. In the opening minutes, the Magicians and Panthers shared an even number of opportunities. Both teams moved the ball well, but the respective defenses did not bend. Attackers were occasionally able to break through the backfield, but scoring threats were in short supply. But they both exhibited resiliency in the first 40 minutes, while neither side was able to force any fatal mistakes to capitalize on their scoring chances. As a result, the game was still scoreless at halftime.
In the second half, Marblehead continued to transition well through midfield, but still struggled to push past the 18. To their credit, the Panthers played a compact defensive front and tackled well that forced turnovers consistently at the edges of the penalty box.
The Magicians had a beautiful sequence of scoring opportunities. Striker Max Dressel first streaked left and saw an opening on the right side, but it never materialized. Minutes later, David Magen had a solid strike, but it flew high over the goal. But despite those near misses, Marblehead was starting to gain momentum.
On defense, the Marblehead boys displayed the grit and tenacity they’ve had the entire month. Adam Loughlin and T.J. Kelly did an outstanding job keeping the Beverly forwards from penetrating the center, while co-captain Colin White was a stalwart on the right side, using his strength and discipline to stop opposing shots from getting close to the net.
Fullback Dylan Gilmore played a solid second half. He won several tackles and 50/50 balls, while his teammate Oliver Murtagh was a formidable presence on the outside flank.
With 17 minutes left in the game, Beverly defenders pulled his Marblehead counterpart down from behind. The infraction spotted the ball just outside the yellow line of the penalty box. Off the ensuing direct kick by Stefan Shepherd, the Beverly goalie punched it out of bounds. Marblehead then teed it up for a corner, where midfielder Jared Halpern sent the ball arching into the fray, only to see Beverly clear it just in time to avert disaster.
With 11:30 left in regulation, Beverly scored the first goal of the game. Marblehead goaltender Rory Zampese, a team captain, was first able to dive to partially block the ball, before it bounced away and into the net.
In the waning minutes, the Magicians had opportunities, but could not get the equalizer, thus losing the close 1-0 battle.
Magicians pin shutout loss on visiting Saugus
Two days later, the Saugus Sachems came to Piper for what proved to be another defensive struggle.
The Magicians gained momentum in the first half, creating numerous chances, only to fall short. Starting with a quality strike by midfielder Jared Halpern, which flew just wide left, Marblehead continued to use an aggressive, controlled passing attack to find seams in the defense. After a defensive breakdown that almost resulted in a Saugus goal, the home team turned on the jets. Its attack was relentless, including a breakaway that was whistled for being offsides inside the 18. Another long ball by defender Colin White put the Magicians in a prime position to strike, only to be denied by a leaping athletic Saugus goalie.
Midfielder Bubacar Jallow then made an effortless cross to center that nearly connected, but the Saugus defender intercepted the play, which nearly turned into a disaster for him when he misfired on the clear, and almost shot it into his own net.
A short time later, Yuri Volkov came up with a well-timed volley that flew high over the net.
The Magicians eventually wore down Saugus in the second half. Halpern placed a shot to the top right corner of the net for a goal five minutes into the half after a direct kick careened through the goal box.
Marblehead now had the momentum, and it opened up the passing lanes through midfield and near the touchlines. With 26 minutes left in the game, Saugus had numbers coming off a counterattack, but its shot sailed high over the crossbar. It was a close call that the Headers did not care to repeat.
In the remaining minutes, Marblehead scored two more goals, both from forward Kyle Hart. Shepherd went one-on-one against the Saugus goalie, and the ball eventually ricocheted to Hart, who knocked it home. He later followed it up with another score to give his teammates added insurance.
Marblehead won with a combination of bend, but didn’t break defense with enough firepower to tilt the scales in the right direction of a close game.
Troy Miller contributed to this report.
