Drury, Hoosac Boys Soccer Battle to Another Tie
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – Not much changed from the Sept. 3 match between Drury and Hoosac Valley, other than this time around Drury was the team looking to tie things up and make a comeback.
The two teams opened their seasons back at Renfrew Field in Adams on Sept. 3 with goals from each side coming within seconds of the final whistle. Drury’s goal coming first, with 35 seconds remaining; both the team and fans were assured the season opener was in their hands. But the Drury-Hoosac rivalry would sure stir things up for a better ending. Hoosac put one in the net with seconds left to end the game in a 1-1 tie.
Tuesday afternoon’s match wasn’t quite the nail biter that the Sept. 3 game was, but it once again ended in a 1-1 tie.
Drury, who is still searching for that first win of the season, controlled the ball throughout the first half and outshot Hoosac, but they were unable to capitalize on those opportunities.
A miscommunication in Drury’s defense with 10 minutes remaining in the first half led to a Hoosac goal.
Hoosac got a shot on net that reflected off of Drury goalie Brian Christian’s hands. David Haley for Hoosac, who was unmarked, followed through on the ball and fed it to Steve Crouch who put it on net and gave Hoosac the 1-0 lead going into the second half.
“That was our only defensive lapse that hurt us,” Drury coach John Jacobbe said. “On the goal, we weren’t marking and if we were maybe we could have got the ball out, but they were opportunistic and did a good job taking the 1-0 lead.”
The second half was very much like the first; both teams moved the ball up the field and defensively, they held their lines and didn’t allow the through balls.
Drury; although down 1-0; refused to back down and continued to push for a goal. Its defense did a great job pushing the ball up the field, and the Blue Devils played up in attempt to not allow Hoosac’s offense in the backfield. Drury’s positioning was key to its goal, which came 20 minutes into the second half.
Drury’s Connor Clark stepped up and won a ball that Hoosac attempted to clear out. Clark was able to control the ball and play a short pass to Sully Boland. Hoosac defense stepped up to cover Boland, which opened up space for Connor Meehan, who received the ball and put it on net to tie the game 1-1.
“We got down in the first half and we had to fight back,” Meehan said. “I got a great pass from Sully and I just hit it and luckily the post helped me out and put it in.”
The final 20 minutes of the game continued to be a back and forth battle for the two rival teams, but neither of them wanted to give up the win.
“It’s always going to be a tough game between these two teams,” Hoosac coach Camilo Bermudez said. “They were up for it and they were prepared for us.”
Drury and Hoosac are both on the road for their next games. Hoosac will take on Lenox Thursday night under the lights and Drury will play Wahconah on Friday, which was rescheduled to a 4 p.m. start.