The First Liberty League Win

October 11

Halfway through our second Liberty League weekend, and we are injecting new life into our season. While we risked a great overall performance with a lack of composure around the net, we were able to grab a 2-1 win over Clarkson, our first league victory of the season. It was a great effort by the entire team, as we came out firing with three shots off the crossbar in the first half. Clarkson keeper Mike St. Croix also made some fantastic grabs on crosses to keep the game scoreless and when Clarkson went ahead midway through the half, it was starting to look just like so many other games in my career where we let opportunities slip away. But late in the first half, Brian Bianchetti produced the play of the year as his 40-yard blast tied the game 1-1. He was booked for taking his shirt off in the ensuing celebration, but it was well worth going into halftime with the score level.

We had a host of chances early in the second half, and a breakaway goal by Jon Hootnick gave us our first Liberty League lead of the year. After Hootnick’s goal, the attacks continued as Jake Weiss hit the crossbar from nearly 30 yards out and Jimmy Worboys was set to finish from close range before being taken down from behind as the official missed an egregious penalty. Clarkson was also lucky not to go down to 10 men as Vassar freshman Brett Anker worked hard to rob the defense of the ball and was taken down by the last defender, generally a red-card offense. While we feel the scoreline could have been more impressive, it was great to get a win before we turn our focus to St. Lawrence.

While we are still in seventh place, we now sit 3 points out of the final playoff spots currently held by Hamilton and none other than St. Lawrence. While a loss would not mathematically eliminate us from the Liberty League playoffs, there is no question that we need to treat today like a playoff game. Based on our performance today, we can certainly play with St. Lawrence; the question will be whether we can finish the chances that come to us (and there may not be a lot of them). Our proficiency around the net today will go a long way toward determining whether this weekend ends in triumph or disappointment.