by Kris Ward, Assistant Men's Soccer Coach
Box
Score
Salisbury, Md. - On a
beautiful Saturday afternoon, the St. Mary's College of Maryland
men's soccer team took on Shenandoah University in the second game
of the Eighth Annual Elmer Lord Classic hosted by Salisbury
University. The Seahawks had an extensive preseason and
looked to get their 2007 season underway with a bang. After
watching Salisbury battle to a scoreless tie with Elmhurst College,
the Hawks took to the field focused and ready.
Starting in their traditional 4-3-3 formation against
Shenandoah's 4-4-2, SMCM came out flying and within the first
minute of the game, forward Cyrus Albertson
(Chevy Chase, Md./St. John's College [D.C.]) had his team up
1-0. Taking down a magnificent first time cross field ball
from junior defender Chris Madrigal (Dunkirk,
Md./Northern), Albertson took two touches to steady and calmly
buried it past the keeper. Unrelenting in their
pressure, St. Mary's set off on one lightning quick attack after
another. Shenandoah struggled with the speed of play and 15
minutes in, SMCM doubled its lead.
Winning the ball at midfield, St. Mary's quickly found sophomore
forward Chad Henry (Silver Spring, Md./Sandy
Spring Friends) who turned and found a streaking senior
forward Alex Pyzik (Bel Air, Md./John Carroll)
breaking in on goal. Pyzik collected the ball, went in on the
keeper alone and touched it around the keeper, but was
promptly taken down inside the box. Penalty kick to St.
Mary's and after senior midfielder Mikael Tigrett
(Hagerstown, Md./North Hagerstown) stepped up and buried it, it was
2-0 St. Mary's; an unbelievable start to the new campaign.
Shenandoah forward Tony Pittman tested SMCM keeper
Rick Besore (Upper Marlboro, Md./DeMatha) with a
sharply angled shot, but Besore made a terrific reaction save to
preserve St. Mary's advantage. The first half ended 2-0 with
St. Mary's feeling very confident about their beginning.
Improved defensive pressure and a more balanced attack were
stressed by head coach Herb Gainey at halftime and
the Hawks set to it in the second half. Eager to increase
their lead but knowing that they must manage the game better, the
Hawks tried to balance their lightning quick breaks with a patient
possession build up. Quick attacking has always been a
staple of St. Mary's and rightly so. All of their best
chances in this game had come from it and the second half proved no
different. Thirteen minutes in, Pyzik took an early pass from
Tigrett and turned to run at goal. Firing off a crisp, low
shot, Brian Garretson, the Shenandoah keeper, appeared to
have dealt with Pyzik's effort, only to spill the ball at the feet
of Albertson. Albertson was first to react and the Shenandoah
defense could do nothing as they watched him pass the ball into the
empty net for his second goal of the day and a 3-0 Hawk lead.
Shenandoah was now going to seriously step up their pressure in
search of a goal to get them back into the game. After a few
tactical adjustments by Coach Gainey, and through the marshalling
of senior midfielder Tim Guinan (Germantown,
Md./Heights), the Hawks battled the aerial assault that was now
launched upon them. Defenders Mike
Rohrs (Annapolis, Md./St. Mary's-Annapolis),
Trevor Zarker (Takoma Park, Md./Sandy Spring
Friends), and Justin Dohn (Wilton, Conn./Wilton)
were unbeatable in the air as they formed a formidable triangle in
front of Besore. It would take this kind of team effort
as Shenandoah was throwing everything forward as fast as
possible. Resolute defending and the threat of counter
attacks held off their opponents and as the final whistle blew, the
Hawks could stand proud of their 3-0 victory.
Excellent team play in both attack and defense, a positive
mentality and a never say die attitude; this looks to be the
beginning of an exciting season for the 2007 edition of the St.
Mary's Seahawks.
