GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. – Hudson Manzolini Thursday continued to come up big in the state tournament for the Monument Mountain boys soccer team.
And being the biggest player on the field is just part of the reason why.
Manzolini scored two goals and assisted on a third in a 4-2 win over Ipswich in the Division 4 Sweet 16 as the Spartans went back to the state quarter-finals for the second straight season.
He scored both Spartan goals, including one in the closing minutes, of 2-1 first-round win on Monday.
Manzolini’s coach said Tuesday that the big forward makes the most of his size by being the best soccer player he can be.
“It’s his size, plus he’s so technical,” Matt Naventi said. “It’s really hard to get the ball off his feet between the combination of his size and his ability on the ball. And most teams struggle with it.
“I mean, he’s 190 pounds, 6-foot-2 or 6-foot-3, and you can’t match up well with size if you don’t have it. The technical ability, you can do. But he’s got a knack for finding the moments in the game where he asserts himself and puts himself in the right spot.”
In the 12th minute on Thursday, Manzolini was in the right spot on a perfectly executed corner kick play for the Spartans to help give them a 1-0 lead.
The entry from the left wing corner went over the crowd to Christian Blanchard on the right side of the 18. Blanchard headed the ball into the middle for Manzolini, who flicked it ahead to Declan Logan for a one-timer into the net.
Nine minutes later, the Spartans doubled their lead.
Blanchard again factored into the goal without getting a point in the scorebook. This time, he followed a well placed ball from Griffin McElroy into the 18 and was shoved in the back by an Ipswich defender, resulting in a penalty kick.
Manzolini went to the spot and finished to make it 2-0, Spartans with 19 minutes, 35 seconds left in the first half.
The 21st-seeded Tigers (10-7-3) got on the board nine minutes later.
This time, it was Monument Mountain whistled for an infraction in the 18, a handball that resulted in Ned Buletza’s successful PK to cut the Spartans’ two-goal lead in half.
Ipswich nearly got the equalizer moments later. A Tiger attacker found space in the middle of the 18 and fired a shot that Monument Mountain keeper Calvin Cooney turned aside for an Ipswich corner kick in the 33rd minute.
Although the Spartans had a 10-6 advantage in shots on goal, Cooney’s saves were all legit and needed to keep the Tigers at bay.
“After we gave up the [second half free kick], we had a miscue in the back, and he definitely saved a goal, that nice play he made late in the second half,” Naventi said. “That was really a key moment, I think, in the game tonight. So, yeah, he’s playing well.
“We’re relying on him to make two or three great saves the rest of the way, every game. We’re going to need it.”
With just less than two minutes left in the first half, the Spartans re-established their two goal lead when Manzolini converted a feed from Milo Potoski to make it 3-1 at the break.
The Spartans generated some dangerous chances early in the second half, in particular getting headers from McElroy and Blanchard that forced Ipswich keeper Finn Wright to make some tough saves.
It was Ipswich that put a goal on the board, though, getting a score from Darwin Ramirez in the 65th minute to once again pull within a goal.
But just like in the first half, Monument Mountain answered.
Just a minute after Ipswich made it 3-2, Curtis headed in a Sean Scarbro throw-in from the right wing to provide the final margin of victory.
“It was a really good response,” Naventi said of his team’s ability to respond to both Tiger goals. “It was just unlucky that ball popped up on Mason [Whiteman, for the handball in the first half]. And we could have pretty easily had a couple more in the first half, too.
“The immediate response was wonderful. Sometimes it goes the opposite way. I often call timeout after we score because the easiest time to concede a goal is within the first five minutes of scoring one at the high school level.”
Fifth-seeded Monument Mountain (7-6-6) moves on to face either No. 4 East Boston or Hamilton-Wenham for a berth in the state semifinals.
The Spartans, who are 5-0-3 in their last eight games, moved over the .500 mark for the first time this season with Thursday’s win.
Prior to the game, Monument Mountain celebrated the 50th anniversary of the school’s state championship in boys soccer, welcoming members of the 1974 team and family members of players to be recognized at midfield.
“What an honor to be part of that,” Naventi said. “And hopefully they got to see the beginnings of, maybe, banner No. 2.”
