SCOTLAND – The Scotia-Glenville men’s soccer team may well pull off the long playoff streak they want if they can continue to win these little battles.
The Tartans won several all over the court on Wednesday and secured big offensive games from Kofi Jack and Xavier DeLuca in a Class A first round victory of the Section II 10-1 tournament over Lansingburgh.
“The goal is for these two to take control of the game,” Scotia-Glenville coach Keith Jack said of his son and DeLuca, both juniors. “If they play that way, we’re hard to beat.”
For long stretches, Scotia-Glenville (6th seed, 10-5-0) performed well in his defensive zone, had solid play in midfield that kept the ball pointed towards Lansingburgh’s cage and drove taken advantage of when opportunities presented themselves. Kofi Jack and DeLuca both finished with four goals, Noah Murdock and Tim Graves both added one, and Connor Raven and Jack both had three assists.
“Our motto is that we are not trying to win the game, but to win every game,” said Keith Jack. “I believe if you win every game, you will win the game. If you win most of the games, you have a good chance of winning the game. It looks like it’s settling in at home.
Scotia-Glenville played their best ball in the 40 minutes that filled the opening halves of the playoffs for all of the Tartans except Kofi Jack, Raven and Ryan LaPoint. LaPoint and Graves are the only seniors on the list.
“They’ve been waiting for this their entire footballing careers,” Kofi Jack said of the playoff first team. “Once they got here, they knew what to do. “
This solid work in the midfield gave Kofi Jack and DeLuca the opportunity to do their offensive thing. Jack scored three goals in the first half when the Tartans took a 5-0 lead, and DeLuca scored three goals in the second half.
“Our midfielder played a good game overall,” said Keith Jack. “You have kids like Quinn Fasciglione who are tasked with fighting and fighting and winning the ball. In the field, we have a lot of children like that.
“We are all working together to get the ball into shooting position,” said Kofi Jack.
The Tartans also made sure that Lansingburgh (No. 11, 4-10-1) didn’t create any offensive momentum. The Knights’ lone score came late in the second half when their goalie Logan Voter connected on a penalty after a Tartans foul.
“At the start of the game we had a few chances,” said Lansingburgh coach Chris Miron. “They locked us up. “
“In defense, it was a team effort,” said Raven, a junior sweeper. “We were able to talk a lot on the pitch and that helped us to keep fit. It was important. When the ball goes over our heads, we are vulnerable.
Scotia-Glenville has often crossed the Lansingburgh defense. Kofi Jack turned a Murdock pass into a breakaway goal to start the scoring after five minutes. Jack’s other goals in the first half were marked by precise passes from Raven.
“It’s a lot of fun to kick him the ball [Jack] and I know he’s going to do something with it. Raven said.
DeLuca was instrumental in the Tartans’ first four goals in the second half, scoring three goals and assisting on Kofi Jack’s last goal.
“We knew ten [Jack] and six [DeLuca] were guys to watch, ”Miron said. “Their skills can be overwhelming at times. “
Graves, who missed the net several times in Friday night’s 9-1 seniors win over Johnstown, scored the Tartans’ final goal.
“No one has become selfish,” said Kofi Jack. “Today was like all season long. We all wanted to help each other.
Scotia-Glenville will play at Averill Park (No. 3, 6-8-1) on Saturday at 3 p.m. in a sectional quarterfinal. Averill Park received a pass in the first round.
Halftime Score: Scotia-Glenville led 5-0. Lansingburgh score: voter 1-0. Scotia-Glenville score: Ko. Jack 4-3, Murdock 1-2, Raven 0-3, DeLuca 4-1, Fasciglione 0-1, Graves 1-0. Goalkeepers: Lansingburgh, voter, 5 saves. Scotia-Glenville, Place, 3 stops.
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Categories: High school sports, Sports
