By Rich Fisher
Fish4scores.com
Sep. 13: Neither team played a full 80 minutes, but the Trenton High boys’ soccer team squeezed more production out of its strong play than Hamilton West did.
The result was a 5-1 victory for the Tornadoes, who used a first-half outburst to keep the Hornets (0-3) winless.
If there was a bright side for West, it’s that it refused to roll over after being on the short end of a 4-1 halftime score.
Hamilton actually took the lead when Matt Griffith converted a cross from Richet Barchue 9:32 into the match. Rather than being sparked by the goal, the Hornets handed Trenton the surge it was looking for.
“I definitely think so,” said Griffith, when asked if his goal fired up Trenton. “After that they just wanted to come back at us stronger.”
With Aba David scoring three straight times, the Tornadoes tallied four goals within 20 minutes to take control at halftime. The Hornets were out-shot 15-5 in the half and looked ready to mail it in.
But to its credit, Hamilton dominated most of the second half before Trenton scored with eight seconds remaining. Adam Edders and Griffith had shots tipped over the crossbar by goalie Raul Mendez. Barchue beat Mendez with two shots that were both thwarted when defender Mario Palacios came over the clear the balls just before they went over the line.
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Hamilton kept attacking, holding a 9-6 shot advantage after intermission.
“That wasn’t our best soccer in the second half,” Trenton coach Joe “King of Fenwick” Fink said. “You gotta give them credit, they knocked us off our game.”
“We passed, we got everything, but it was our spacing, I think,” Griffith said. “We’re almost there, the passes just aren’t tough enough to get to me or anyone else.”
Despite the winless start for Chris “C Mo” Morales’ team, Griffith feels there is still hope.
“It’s just the beginning of the season,” he said. “You never know what can come up. We need to check the ball, hustle, win the 50 50s, just not stop. Winning one game and our boost would go up so much.”
Nottingham boys get first victory behind Midura’s two goals
Matt Midura tallied twice, giving him four goals for the season, in pacing the Nottingham boys to a 3-0 triumph over Ewing.
It’s the first win of the season for the Northstars (1-2), who also got a goal from Gilmar Bejarano. Sophomore keeper Pat Luckie posted the shutout, his first this season and third of his career.
Streaking Steinert boys blank Allentown for third straight victory
It only took one goal to give the suddenly hot Steinert boys their third straight win, as Adrian Strawinski’s first-half tally produced a 1-0 victory over Allentown. The Spartans improved to 3-1-1 heading into Friday night’s match under the Veterans Park lights against Nottingham.
Thomas Kozemchak, who has been strong in goal during the winning streak, made eight saves for the shutout. Kozemchak has made 15 saves and allowed one goal in the three victories.
Nottingham girls win again for best three-game start in 10 years
Who’s got the best soccer record in Hamilton Township after the first 10 days?
None other than those Nottingham girls, whose 5-3 win over visiting Ewing today put the Northstars at 3-0. It is the Northstars best start since beginning the 2007 season at 2-0-1, and gives them some nice momentum heading into Friday’s night game at Veterans Park against Steinert.
Gia Girman had a hat trick for Nottingham, while Stephanie Teixeira and Giuliana Pocino added one goal each. Girman has five goals for the Stars and had a multi-goal game for the second straight match. Sara Haas made seven saves for Christie “Fish” Fink’s squad.
Hamilton evens record at 2-2 with victory over Trenton
Hamilton West got back to .500 with a 4-0 victory over visiting Trenton, as four different players found the back of the net.
Leanna Gioscio led the way with a goal and an assist, while Victoria Ptak, Jenna Slack and Abby Sprague also scored. Lauren Korpics set up two goals and Maxine Marano added an assist. Alyssa Firestine added the assist. Korpics leads the Hornets with four goals, while Gioscio has three and Ptak and Slack have two each.
Spartans suffer first loss after being blanked by Allentown
Steinert failed to find the back of the net in suffering its first loss, 2-0, to undefeated Allentown. Erika Golik had four saves in goal for the Spartans (2-1).
