By Avonlea Cummings
Hometown Weekly Sports Reporter
The Xaverian soccer team's home turf was enveloped in a frigid embrace as dedicated fans clad in layers of warm attire vociferously cheered, their exhalations forming visible condensation. This contest marked the season's inaugural epic showdown, a yearly spectacle when the Xaverian soccer team clashed with the formidable Medfield Warriors. In a grueling match, the Warriors outperformed the Hawks in a hard-fought battle, ultimately securing a non-league victory with a final score of 1-0.
Xaverian burst onto the field with palpable energy and a fierce desire for ball possession, demonstrating their readiness to leave it all on the field. Employing deft maneuvers and showcasing their high-level skills, Xaverian initiated the game with vigor and authority. However, Medfield had come well-prepared for whatever challenges the Hawks would present, frequently thwarting any opportunities the Hawks attempted to exploit once they found their footing.
Head coach Garrett Bowers expressed satisfaction with the team's sense of urgency and adaptability throughout the match. He acknowledged that there is room for improvement in execution to fully capitalize on opportunities as the season progresses.
"We are starting to execute what we need to. It’s a matter of in those pivotal moments of the game, when we need to can, we successfully pull off our execution. I was happy with the boys’ approach, but the execution is fixable and we need to do some fixing. We knew we had to keep the ball moving because their pressure was terrific. When we were able to move the ball quickly, especially side to side we were able to make a bit of wiggle room, although there is always backside pressure on the ball, we would adjust to their formation, but they have a very impressive team,” said Bowers.
As the referee's whistle pierced the cold air, it marked the beginning of the second half of the contest. Xaverian put in tremendous effort to advance the ball towards their offensive end of the field, yet Medfield's formidable defense presented a formidable obstacle, making it challenging to breach their lines and convert scoring opportunities into goals.
"We had Noah Coenraets as our center back he stepped up and played a very solid game for us tonight. We also had Justin Briggs on the outside midfield, he was very active and creative, our midfielders worked very hard for us, they are a set of three and they worked very well today. We are happy with the direction we are heading; we need to get the final piece of punctuation in place is the key for us. We will continue drilling urgency and movement, our last piece is composure and that’s our focus,” said Bowers.
The boys will head to Catholic Memorial High School on Thursday, October 5th, for a league competition, the scene is set for a 6:15 PM start time.
