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- Category: Past Issues
caption, page 9: CT Junior Soccer Association runners-up
In the final week of the fall soccer season, the CT Junior Soccer Association Northeast Division held its playoffs. The NECONN boys’ U14 team was the second seed and matched up in the semifinal game Oct. 6 against Hebron for the third time this season. They had split the regular season series, and this was the rubber match with the winner advancing to the championship game on Sunday.
Right from the start, NECONN dominated play. Midfielders Marco Suriano, David Redfield, Ethan Werstler, Tristan Anderson and Sam Paul kept the ball in the Hebron defensive end of the field. With eight minutes gone in the first half, Paul ripped an instep kick from twenty yards out into the top right corner to give NECONN a lead they would never relinquish. Three minutes later, William Hamill distributed a perfect through ball off to Ryan Black, and Black buried his shot to up the score to 2-0. With five minutes left in the half, Hamill again would record the assist when he dished off a nice ball to Collin Singleton in the box. Singleton’s score would give NECONN a comfortable 3-0 lead going into the half.
In the final stanza, NECONN’s back line defense of Cal Wilcox, Zach Gagnon, William Liscomb and Garrett Sward was outstanding. They shut down all Hebron rushes and allowed NECONN goalie Elijah Dufour to make the easy save and transition the ball back up the field. About ten minutes into the second half, Ian Sohan gave Ryan Black a pass behind the defense. Black’s shot deflected off the Hebron keeper, and Sam Paul was there to chip the loose ball over the goalie’s head for his second goal of the game. Just four minutes later, Collin Singleton would slot a ball to David Redfield at the top of the box, and Redfield’s volley just found the inside corner of the net to give NECONN a solid 5-0 lead. The NECONN scoring wasn’t over until twenty minutes left in the game when Paul lofted a ball into the box which Josh Resnick camped under. Josh wisely passed off to William Hamill who capped of the scoring with a nice touch past the sprawled out Hebron goalie. Hebron was able to finally get one past Dufour before the final whistle blew, but the 6-1 NECONN victory was what they needed to advance into the championship game.
Oct. 7, NECONN traveled to Stafford Springs to take on Coventry in the championship game of the U14 Division. Coventry and NECONN had battled to a 2-2 tie in the regular season, but this matchup had few highlights for NECONN as Coventry dominated from first whistle to last and cruised to a 6-1 win. NECONN’s lone offensive highlight came with 10 minutes left in the first half when Ryan Black would draw a crowd and then side a perfect pass off to Sam Paul. Paul dribbled to the top of the box and cracked a line-drive into the back of the net. Though this was not the way NECONN wanted to end its season, they did earn the Runner-Up Trophy while sporting a very satisfying 10-2-1 overall record.