Lawrence upsets Hopewell, 2-0

Boys SoccerJust one week after suffering a difficult loss to West Windsor-Plainsboro that exposed many of the team’s weaknesses, the Lawrence High School boys soccer team earned its biggest win of the young season.

By: Steve Feitl
   The Cardinals (4-1) shocked Colonial Valley Conference powerhouse Hopewell Valley on Monday with a gritty 2-0 victory.
   It was the Cardinals’ first win over the Bulldogs in five years and a huge boost of confidence for the young team.
   "It was a tough challenge," a proud head coach Keith Fithen said. "We didn’t know how the kids were going to respond to the level of play. They showed Monday that we’re on the right track and the kids are doing the right thing. All we have to do is work on that and let the other things fall where they may."
   In addition to facing the experienced Bulldog squad, the Cardinals were at an added disadvantage when they went into the game without their starting sweeper and co-captain Nick Boucher. The senior, who is the only returning defender from the 2000 Cardinal squad, twisted his ankle in Lawrence’s game Friday against Trenton.
   By game time on Monday, he still lacked his normal mobility so Fithen decided to leave him on the sidelines and asked center-halfback Dan Jackson to fill in as sweeper.
   To accompany the lineup changes, the Cardinals also tried a 4-4-2 formation for the first time this season, in hopes of combating Hopewell’s speed and ability to penetrate the defense.
   The adjustments worked wonders for the Cardinals.
   "The kids played hard in the first half," Fithen said. "We dictated play. The 4-4-2 stopped their penetration. Hopewell likes to punish you right away with their speed. Our adjustments stopped a lot of Hopewell’s chances."
   To further their cause, the Cardinals also struck first.
   Senior Mark Strycharz hit the corner kick and Alex Thompson finished it off, placing it in the open side of the net to give Lawrence a key 1-0 lead.
   "That was major against Hopewell," Fithen said. "You know they’re going to come back, but at least you’re ahead. You don’t want to be falling behind at that point."
   But the Cardinals continued playing the game at their pace and added the insurance goal on a two-on-one with Brian Bunn and Josh Ben-Asher. Bunn made a perfect pass to Ben-Asher who boomed a one-timer past the Hopewell goaltender.
   With a more comfortable 2-0 lead, the Cardinals now awaited the inevitable comeback from the Bulldogs. According to Fithen, the team was aware they would have to stay with the quick Hopewell players for the remainder of the second half.
   "In the second half, we had to challenge and stay with their intensity," Fithen said. "Whatever they brought, we had to match it.
   "Once we did that, everything else fell into place. It was a matter of not getting an unlucky break at that point."
   And the Cardinals avoided the unlucky break and bad penalties to hold onto its 2-0 lead.
   Even Hopewell coach Tony Suozzo was impressed with the game plan Lawrence brought into the CVC match-up.
   "I have to give full credit to Lawrence," Suozzo said. "They came out with a game plan and followed it. They wanted to score early and let their defense take over.
   "I told our guys that if we came out flat, they were going to take advantage."
   Lawrence had a good week of soccer, also earning wins of Roxbury on Sept. 12 and Trenton on Friday.
   In the Roxbury game, the Cardinals defeated their unknown foe, 2-1, with Ben-Asher securing the game-winner.
   Against Trenton, the Cardinals had another 2-0 victory.
   Fithen was happy to see his team maintain its focus.
   "The CVC is very tough," Fithen said. It’s never a given that you’re going to win any game. There’s been a lot of upsets in the conference already and there’s no clear-cut team that’s above everyone else."
   Strycharz started the scoring with a corner kick that hit the ground before getting to the Trenton goaltender and bounced through his legs.
   While it wasn’t pretty, the Cardinals were more than happy to take the goal and the 1-0 lead.
   "The goalie just wasn’t prepared," Fithen said. "It made them look bad, but it gave us a jump on the game two minutes in."
   Lawrence got its second goal from junior Josh Margolis, who smacked a free kick over everyone’s heads and into the net.
   But while the wins over Roxbury and Trenton were appreciated, it is the ‘W’ over Hopewell that is the real victory for the Lawrence team this week.
   "Getting the ‘W’ against Hopewell was big for our confidence because we’re such a young team," Fithen said. "We feel like now we’re a game up on everyone else because they all have to play Hopewell still.
   "And Hopewell will be ready now. We showed them you have to play every game like its your last game of the season."