After beginning the season with four straight wins, the Marblehead High boys soccer team (6-2) dropped its next two, but rebounded nicely to end last week with a couple of victories over Saugus and Danvers. Coach Elmer Magana’s club hopes that it’s just the start of another run of successes, and with many more regular season games still left to be played, they are only four points away from clinching a postseason berth.
Non-league host Andover shutdown these Magicians, 2-0 to snap their four-game winning streak on Sept. 13. But playing shorthanded might have contributed mightily to the loss.
“We had injuries to our defense and midfielders, and so it was tough to go up against a skillful team like Andover under those circumstances,” said Magana, “and to make matters worse, Ilan Druker was denied a goal when his free kick hit the crossbar. But their goalie also made spectacular saves to shut us out. Their defenders also blocked shots on the goal line with their bodies as if it was hockey. it was insane. But the bottom line is that we missed our chances, and they didn’t.”
Marblehead goalie Matias Watts-Cruz made two critical saves among others to keep things close on the scoreboard.
The Marblehead boys had since taken their road show to Beverly on Sept. 15, but while they did score a couple of goals, the hometown Panthers netted three to win the game.
“The toughest field to play on is arguably in the Panthers’ den,” said Magana. “Our injuries continued to follow us. But our guys were determined to leave everything on the pitch, and they did.
“But the Panthers bring physicality to the rest of their skillset, which makes it a dangerous combination (to combat),” added Magana. “However, our boys pushed back after falling behind 2-0.”
Mark Vinokur ignited the offense with a goal to begin the second half. Captain Jared Halpern then battled two defenders to send a cross to his fellow captain Miles Fontela-Tuttle, who headed home the tying goal. But the Panthers quickly recovered with a breakaway score.
Throughout the final 12 minutes of the game, the visitors created offensive opportunities, but couldn’t score. It didn’t help matters any that Beverly collapsed pretty much all of its defenders in front of the net to make it nearly impossible to score a goal. But at the other end of the pitch, Watts-Cruz came up with three stops to keep his teammates in it.
“Nonetheless, it was still a great team effort,” said Magana. “Our boys kept their heads up. No one so far had put fear in the Panthers like we did. But sadly, forward David Magen injured his ankle 30 minutes into the game, and he will be wearing a boot for a few weeks. We are definitely going to miss the pressure that he puts on opposing defenses.”
But despite the frustrations that came out of the Beverly game, the Magicians got back on the winning track with a 3-0 shutout win over host Saugus.
“After losing the previous two, we were determined to bounce back,” said Magana. “The Sachems came out super hungry, pressing us all over the field. They too were determined to stop us from scoring. But after absorbing their best shots, we went on the attack, and scored.”
Halpern, Druker and Fontela-Tuttle accounted for the three goals. Julien Poitevin assisted on Ilan’s score, and Quinn Cohene set up Fontela-Tuttle’s marker.
“We pressed and passed the ball quickly to create our scoring chances,” said Magana, “and midfielder Erik Badzak conducted our attack orchestra by successfully punching holes in the Saugus wall. “I’m very proud of my boys. We barely had three (substitutes) due to injuries and illnesses. Newcomer Julien Poitevin filled in for the injured David Magen, and did a fantastic job.”
Watts-Cruz was able to secure his fourth shutout of the young season after making two saves against Saugus. He has made 21 saves so far this year.
A trip to Danvers closed out the week for the Magicians, and they were able to make it two in a row by edging the Falcons, 2-1.
Halpern notched one of the goals from Poitevin, and Druker had the other one that was assisted by Bubacarr Jallow.
“We were able to move the ball around to crack the Danvers wall,” said Magana. “Our midfielders – Erik Badzak, Jared Halpern and Mark Vinokur – found the holes in the wall to create our scoring chances. But we also missed so many other chances.”
Magana said that newcomers like Julien Poitevin and Quinn Cohane played well, while filling in for their injured teammates. “Left back Bubacarr Jallow also had a great game, defending and assisting the offense,” the coach added.
Starting goalie Watts-Cruz was out visiting colleges, but JV1 keeper Andrew Halvorson was a good substitute, protecting the net, according to Magana. “He made three important saves to help us get this win,” said the coach.
