The boys soccer team crushed the Aragon Dons 2-0 on Friday afternoon in dominant fashion.
To start things off, M-A instantly drove into Aragon territory after kickoff with a header by senior midfielder Theo Leslie. They continued to overwhelm the Dons’ defense as senior forward Nico Lanza finessed the ball past the goalkeeper to set the score at 1-0 only two minutes into the game.
The Dons attempted to reciprocate, but couldn’t find their way through the Bears’ impenetrable defense. Back on offense, Lanza and junior midfielder Nico Melani pursued numerous shot attempts, but none were successful.
Melani continued to set the pace on offense with multiple passes, setting M-A up for good shots on goal. The Dons’ drives were short-lived due to smothering defensive pressure by the Bears and rapid turnovers. Junior midfielder Elliot Keighery nearly managed to score, but his shot was deflected by the goalkeeper at the last minute. Immediately after, senior defender Nolan Kanevsky nailed a short shot into the back of the net at the 23-minute mark to make the score 2-0.
Possession continued to change until Melani had yet another close attempt on goal. The Dons began to push into Bear territory, but failed to score with numerous saves by junior goalkeeper Torry Franz.
“I think we did very well communicating in our back line to make sure no balls got through,” junior defender Finn Doherty said.
Continuing M-A’s offensive aggression, senior defender Pietro Veccheirelli pushed the ball upfield to give senior midfielder Saleem Hamzawi multiple attempts at scoring, but none were successful. The Bears exited the half up 2-0, leaving the Dons in a difficult position for the rest of the game.
The second half began with dynamic back-and-forth play as both teams made brief but deep forays into the opposing sides’ territories. M-A’s highly coordinated offense and excellent field positioning led to a powerful shot on goal by Melani, which was promptly snagged by the Aragon goalkeeper.
After this attempt to extend the Bears’ lead, the gameplay mellowed out and became more defensive. The next five minutes were characterized by slower, more precise passes as both teams focused on keeping hold of the ball.
Despite the half’s slow start, the Bears soon gained a definitive edge. The team continued to leverage their midfielders’ ability to outplay the Dons along the sidelines, and soon M-A was picking up momentum once again.
However, Aragon was then given an opportunity to spark a comeback with a free kick against the Bears, but it was easily caught by Franz. Doherty forced multiple turnovers, helping to keep M-A hovering just outside of the Dons’ goal.
The Bears continued to patiently wind down the clock, methodically stifling the Dons’ increasingly desperate offense. Exceptional defense from M-A, led by junior defender Vincent Alastalo, kept Aragon’s offensive strikes short-lived and ineffectual.
Doherty led one final set of attacks, pressuring the Dons until the final whistle blew and the scoreboard announced a 2-0 victory for M-A.
“The last couple games, we’ve had one goal, and this game, we were really focused on keeping that clean sheet, and we want to do that for our keeper and just for our defense,” Doherty said.
“Wednesday’s game was really physical, and this was much better to see honestly, with more passing the ball, some tactical fouls, nothing more. It was a good game,” Veccheirelli said.
The Bears will take the fight to Sequoia on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.
