Liang Leads Hornets Past Drury
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The Hornets dominated play most of the afternoon, but between some tough breaks, cagey Drury defense and strong play in goal, it was a one-goal contest until the 63rd minute.
“I don’t know what it is, but they play us very hard,” said McCann Tech coach Stephen McAllister, whose team earned a 2-0 win over its Bi-County rival the first time around this fall.
“We had plenty of chances. A couple of offsides, which our guys adjusted to.”
McAllister was happy to see his side win its second straight and improve to 5-1-3 overall despite being a little short-handed.
“We’re down six players right now because of an illness, and three starters,” he said. “Some of these kids stepped up to start today, and they did a heck of a job.”
Drury keeper Dom Duteau made four saves before leaving the game following a collision in the 35th minute.
He kept his sheet clean until the 17th minute mark, when Liang cashed in the rebound of a Justin Chen shot from deep on the left wing that rang off the crossbar.
The Hornets had a couple of good chances to get some insurance before halftime, but a Liang header in the 24th minute went just high, and his direct free kick from 25 yards out in the 33rd minute was a little off target.
Drury’s best chance to get back level came in the early minutes of the second half when McCann Tech keeper Jesse Brazee came well off his line to shut down an attacker at the top of the 18, but the Blue Devils got the ball behind him for a try by Steven Cornell.
But McCann Tech senior back Carter Foucher made a defensive save to preserve the 1-0 lead.
The rest of the second half went largely like the first, with the Hornets having the bulk of the chances. Eighth-grader Parker Rivard spelled Duteau in the Drury goal and ended up with eight saves; Duteau returned to play in the field in the second half.
The back-breaker for the Blue Devils came with 17 minutes, 35 seconds left on the clock. That is when Chen scored from about 20 yards out to beat a diving Rivard inside the far post and make it 2-0.
Three minutes later, Jack Cooper sent Liang with a through ball down the left wing, and Liang converted for his team-leading 11th goal.
McCann Tech hosts Westfield Tech on Friday.
Drury (3-8) hosts Gateway on Friday.