With eight of the ten SDSSAA Premier Boys Soccer teams making the playoffs, the regular season is as much about jockeying for a decent post-season seeding than it is about merely qualifying for quarter-final play on May 21st.
And with just six games in the schedule for each of the ten teams, an extra couple of points here and there can go a long way in moving two or three rungs further up the ladder.
Catching a bit of a break, the Lo-Ellen Park Knights improved to 2-2-0 Monday thanks to a 2-1 win over the Bishop Carter Gators.
The fortuitious break came in the form of the game-winning goal. With roughly 15 minutes remaining, Quin Mazzuchin found himself alone with Bishop keeper Isaac Jeanveau.
Though his initial header would go off the crossbar, Mazzuchin managed to steer the rebound into the net. Problem was that the initial shot hit the field goal post upright and not the soccer net crossbar, a challenging call for local officials as those who know the set-up at the James Jerome Sports Complex will certainly acknowledge.
(*With the game being one of the Eastlink Community TV broadcasts, it was only through their replay capabilities that the sequence of events noted above was officially confirmed)
The strike came after Massimo Grossi (LEP) and Cameron Vehkala (BAC) had traded tallies earlier in the contest, with the former opening the scoring about ten minutes in.
"We were keeping up the pressure on them, forcing them to cough up the ball a little bit," suggested Grossi. "We had a lucky shot in the middle, Jaeden Dulaney headed it and I ended up getting the rebound and put it in."
One of a handful of players in the Lo-Ellen lineup who has experience in competitive soccer growing up, Grossi explained that moving that entire roster in the proper direction on the pitch might not be quite as difficult as one might think at the home of the Knights.
"There are some great athletes here," said Grossi. "They just need a little bit of guidance. Soccer is completely different than football or hockey or anything like that. We try and use their already developed skills and harness them towards the game of soccer."
Looking ahead to key matchups with both Lockerby and St Benedict, Grossi and company will be focusing on some critical aspects of their game. "We've just got to move the ball with strong passes and good communication," he said.
"Start with short passes in our end and then deep to our strikers, we can get a good read on their defense and get a lot of shots on net."
In other Senior Boys Premier action this week, the Collège Notre-Dame Alouettes trimmed the Confederation Chargers 1-0 (goal by Max Portelance), while the Lockerby Vikings edged the Horizon Aigles by that exact same score thanks to a goal from Dillain Abeyratne.
The St Charles College Cardinals improved to 4-0-0 on Tuesday with a 4-0 win over CND and the Macdonald-Cartier Panthères continue to be a tough out, playing the undefeated Lasalle Lancers (3-0-1) to a 1-1 draw that same day.
