ALBANY - With steady sophomore midfielder Gabe Felts unavailable for Tuesday’s match against Zane Trace, headman Justin Roush had to alter his starting lineup. However, as the Monty Python gang so aptly stated “Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition”, nobody expected the change Roush was to make.
Benching all his normal starters other than goaltender Riley Abfell, the Spartans taking the pitch for the first touch were a mix of first and second year players, all of whom had minimal varsity experience. It was literally the bottom portion of the submitted roster list.
They were facing a senior laden, very physical Pioneer squad that was not hesitant to body their way into position or advantage. What was expected, a ten goal shellacking by the visitors? It didn’t happen.
The inexperienced group battled for every ball and every inch of turf, hounding their bigger counterparts at every turn and possession. Though Pioneer passes were strong and lengthy, they were not successful in piercing the nets. The gritty performance held sway for nearly ten minutes before Roush brought in his normal starters.
Inspired by their second-teamers, the Spartans kept up the spirited action. Junior Jake Roush and frosh Jayce Cooper managed to pressure the Pioneer defenders and it took a stellar save by goaltender Judah Hanks to parry Roush’s laser shot away midway through the half.
Hanks was a weapon in that his booming goal kicks often landed well past the center line to set up his strikers. Matching him was Abfall, coming off his line frequently to thwart send-in balls before they became trouble, especially by smothering a wicked shot by Gavyn Allen.
Allen gained retribution, though, when a squibbed clearance fell near him on the left side in the eighteen yard box. He quick stepped to the ball and gave the Pioneers the one goal advantage with ten minutes remaining in the first stanza.
Making the most of good linked passes, Alexander created a scoring possibility with a run by Roush but he was unable to come up with a way past Hanks and the first forty ended with the 1-0 Zane Trace lead.
Asked about the wholesale change to begin the game, Roush said that he wanted to shake things up after watching the tape of the last match.
“Sometimes in life we can all fall into taking things for granted and not fearing that there is no one can take what you have. Watching that film I didn’t see people fear that there was something to lose. Starting those guys, I believe in them; this is a varsity level team with some speed. I’m super proud that they held it down. It was good for the regulars to see how the game was progressing, to watch the game and see what you’re not seeing when you are on the field.”
Unfortunately for the home side, the old second half bugaboo hit almost immediately. A hesitant defensive move sent the ball directly to a pressing Ivan Chavez who blocked the clearance just steps away from the goal.
A quick simple step by the senior sent it to the far side of the framing where Abfall had no chance to react. Down 2-0, the Spartans needed to regroup in a hurry.
And they did, though the size and strength of the Pioneers was tough to overcome. Cooper, Roush, Logan Brooks, and Mason Morris brought the battle to them, Brooks filling in for the missing Felts. Gradually, the Spartans began to build movement and consistent forays toward the Trace defenders.
Jake Roush took a nice Jasper Roush pass around the central defender and looked to have a clear shot but was taken down from behind, arguably fouled but play continued.
Just past midway, Carter Wandling sprint-dribbled the ball down the left flank, clearing the wing. From his well-earned open spot, he sent a cross to a streaking Morris who beat Hanks to his left and halved the lead to 2-1.
A golden opportunity gave the Pioneers a chance to increase their lead with a touch over nine minutes to go. A yellow card foul gave Chavez a free kick just outside the penalty area and directly facing the goal. He sent a powerful blast to the strings but Abfall was up to the challenge and corralled the attempt.
As the last few minutes ticked away, the Pioneers relied on long clearances and Hanks’ big leg to keep the ball deep into Spartan territory so the hosts would have distance to overcome to put together any attack. At the ending whistle, they held the 2-1 lead keeping the gritty Spartans missing their first win of the season.
“I know it was risky putting in those young guys but when teams aren’t winning, you have guys sitting thinking we can do it. So let’s give a try and show me what you got. I’m proud of what they did. I told them we needed some dogs out there and they showed up.”
Talking about Saturday’s home match with long-time foe South Webster, another physical team, Roush was concise. “We looking to put on the same performance as tonight and defend to the end, to when the keeper picks up the ball. I’m looking forward to see how we compete on Saturday.”
SCORING:
Alex: 0 1 1
Trace: 1 1 2
Trace: Allen 1st 10:21 0-1
Trace: Chavez 2nd 38:07 0-2
Alex: Mason (Wandling) 2nd 18:13 1-2
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