BEACON - Gavin Flynn smiled to himself while changing out of his jersey, proud to have notched his first goal this season, which helped clinch an important victory. Then, that glee was momentarily interrupted by the smack heard ‘round a 10-foot radius.
It elicited a chorus of laughs from teammates, and even Flynn, when Anthony Cocca crept up behind his friend and gave him what we’ll call a painfully playful pat on the back.
But it was an “Attaboy!” nonetheless as the Arlington boys soccer team celebrated what it hopes will be a springboard performance.
“It’s good momentum for us going into league play,” Flynn said of a hard-fought win over Beacon on Thursday. “It’s important to go into that on a high, and we just beat another undefeated team.”
Noah Mellen scored in the first half, Flynn added a late insurance goal, and the defense excelled as the Admirals held off Beacon in a spirited, physical 2-0 road win.
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This, of course, was merely a non-league meeting of teams in different sections and classifications. But it was a matchup of elite Dutchess County programs in what, essentially, was an iron-sharpens-iron contest.
Arlington last fall won a Section 1 championship and reached the Class AAA state semifinals. Beacon captured its third consecutive Section 9 Class A title and just missed advancing to the state final four. As well, the Bulldogs already have beaten some quality large-school opponents this month and did threaten the Admirals.
“They're a fantastic team with some excellent players and they’re well-coached,” Arlington coach Brady Battistoni said of Beacon. “Smaller school and all, beating a team like that isn't easy.”
Possession was about even for most of the second half and the Bulldogs applied pressure at times, but the Arlington defense was superb in snuffing out each of those chances with quick-reaction plays.
With the Admirals protecting a one-goal lead, Shea Baso pulled off a spectacular leaping header to redirect a free kick that was ticketed for the upper corner with 19:17 remaining. Four minutes earlier, it was Matt Mazzella who had a similar deflection near the right post.
Arlington cleared four free kicks and three corners in the second half, staving off a potential rally. Zach Butts made one save to notch the Admirals’ first shutout. The defense, Flynn said, “clutched up and really came through for us.”
Perhaps even more encouraging is that Arlington did that despite being without one of its best defenders in Miles Mayo, a senior captain who was injured earlier this month. Basso, Mazzella, Evan Simmons, Rian Driscoll and Dylan Jimenez are among the key contributors who’ve “stepped up” in his absence.
“They've got some good history and they've done well the last few years,” Mazzella said of Beacon. “But we also have a great history, and we're a larger school. So, we knew that a win for them over us would be huge and we had to match their intensity.”
Mellen put them on the board in the 25 th minute, capitalizing a long sequence that showcased ball movement the new coaching staff has emphasized.
Simmons gained possession on the perimeter and passed to Cocca, who found Dylan Manriquez inside, and he slipped a pass to Mellen toward the left post for what Battistoni called a “calm” finish.
Flynn made it 2-0 with 14:46 left after being awarded a penalty kick following a foul. The senior stutter-stepped to his right then pivoted and fired behind the keeper into the left corner.
“I was watching Cole Palmer highlights this morning,” Flynn said with a chuckle, referring to the British soccer star. “I had to show the guys how it’s done.”
The Admirals (4-3) have been “inconsistent” thus far, the players acknowledged, but they’ve offered glimpses of their potential in some impressive victories, including an upset of Scarsdale, which hadn’t lost since 2021.
Upcoming for them is a showdown with Roy C. Ketcham, a rival they edged in overtime of the sectional semifinals last year. Adding to that, the Storm is undefeated through seven games this season. This win, Flynn hopes, will provide necessary “momentum.”
Beacon's Aidan Spiecker made five saves, including two leaping deflections that thwarted corner kick attempts. There is some disappointment in the loss because this game was within reach of the Bulldogs until the waning minutes. But there certainly were positive takeaways.
“I think we adjusted well at halftime and played fairly well, and put ourselves in position to possibly tie,” said coach Craig Seaman, whose team is 4-1. “When you play tough teams, mistakes can bite you, and it highlights some things we need to work on.”
In creating its schedule last summer, Beacon literally went “big game” hunting, booking contests with schools in larger classifications. The team opened its season with wins over Cornwall, which reached the Class AA regional final last season, and Monroe-Woodbury, a Section 9 contender in Class AAA.
They’ve also got Bryam Hills upcoming in a rematch of their regional final last November that ended in an overtime loss. These games, Seaman said, are scheduled with the purpose of “testing yourself” are preparing for the playoffs.
Likewise for the Admirals, whose schedule features few games in which they’ll be heavily favored. That, as the group adjusts to a new head coach and a rejiggered roster after its sterling postseason run.
“I'm pretty confident,” Mazzella said. “We've started slower than we wanted, but with the talent we have, I think we can get ourselves in the position we were in last year. We’re good.”
Stephen Haynes: shaynes@poughkeepsiejournal.com; 845-437-4826; Twitter: @StephenHaynes4
This article originally appeared on Poughkeepsie Journal: Boys soccer: Defense shines as Arlington tops Beacon in meeting of Dutchess County elites
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