Mounties-Millionaires' Showdown Ends in Tie
LENOX, Mass. -- The Mount Greylock boys' soccer team was on its way to showing everyone just who the top dog in Berkshire County was on Tuesday night.But before the Mounties were officially crowned, Lenox's Andrew Vickery had something left to say. Vickery trapped a ball with his chest, brought it down to his feet and scored past Greylock goalie Sean Houston to tie the game at 1-1 with five minutes to go. The game would end in a tie shortly after, leaving the two North County rivals longing for the rematch in Williamstown on October 24.
""The game tonight was high level and had the feel of a playoff game," Mounties head coach Blair Dils said. "We controlled for long stretches in the first half, forcing their keeper to come up big on a few occasions. They stepped up their pressure in the second half and made life difficult for our backs.
"We're disappointed we didn't get the two points, but a tie at their place under the lights is not a terrible result. We'll worry about the return match when it gets here, but it should set itself up to be another great game."
After a scoreless first half in which Greylock (5-0-1) had an 8-6 edge in shots, the visitors took a 1-0 lead on a goal by senior forward Jesse Foehl in the 62nd minute of play.
"Jesse's goal was a great heads-up play by him," Dils said. "He passed the ball to himself, outran the centerback and then slipped the ball past the charging keeper. The ball slowly trickled toward goal and had just enough on it to make it across the line. He's been working very hard all season, so it was great to see him rewarded with a goal."
The Millionaires (4-1-1) fought back, however, earning a 5-3 advantage in shots and a 4-1 edge in corner kicks after halftime. Vickery finally cashed in in the 75th minute, taking away a shutout from Houston (seven saves) in the process.
"It was frustrating for us to give up a late goal," Dils said "We had done a very good job of keeping their forwards in front of us or offsides. Our backline got a little uneven on their goal, which allowed their far wing to take the ball down with enough time to slide it past Sean."
In addition to a solid night by Houston, Dils said junior Jonah Majumder played a big role in the Mounties' success on defense all game long.
Greylock faces another tough North Division test on Friday, when it plays a road game against Pittsfield at 4:30 p.m.