In what was gearing up to be a battle of equals, the U8 Premier Old Bridge Breakers played host to the Howell United Vipers in their first divisional play confrontation. The two teams had met earlier for the first time in an indoor tournament just one month ago, battling to a tie. As the opening whistle sounded, the first five minutes of the game began with what looked like a wide open contest, as both teams were able to penetrate deep to the opposing zones and keep each goalie on edge, with each side looking to strike first in the opposing mesh. The momentum and direction of the game was about to change in the sixth minute, however, as Breaker Cameron Allen stole a pass at midfield and broke away, scoring unassisted to give the Breakers the first tally — and the lead for good, as it turned out. And in the 13th minute, Cameron scored again, by taking a well-placed pass from Jonas Melendez and putting it behind the Viper net minder for a 2-0 Breaker lead.
The Breakers continued to maintain pressure at midfield, aided by Nick Cousillas and Jake Perlmutter, along with help from the first-half defensive strength of Justin Einwechter and Louie Petrozziello, who together shut down any attempts of Viper penetration from this point on, keeping the ball over the opposing 50. In the 24th minute, Cameron repeated the feat one more time, stealing the ball in Viper territory and fleeing the last pursuer and completing a first-half hat trick, giving the Breakers a 3-0 lead heading into the intermission.
Along with second-half defensive help from Tyler Earl and Minkah Fitzpatrick, the Breakers were able to continue to shut down any Viper penetration, allowing just one second-half shot on goal.
The Breakers continued their second-half domination as they maintained their consistent pressure and ball control. Numerous scoring opportunities were presented, with a barrage of 12 second-half shots from Breakers Hazem Miawad, Liam Habel, Brandon Carriera, Michael Loeffler and Nicky Petrozziello, who for the second straight game gave the opposition fits with his consistent pestering and speed to the ball. The persistence paid off in the 40th minute as Brandon closed out the scoring for the Breakers on a nice feed from Michael, resulting in a 4-0 final for the Breakers. Breaker goalie Chris Botros was on his toes as usual, handling seven Viper shots in all and never hesitating to fearlessly venture out as far as needed to take the play away from the opposition to stop any threat and preserve the shutout.
The Breakers will travel to Jackson next for a match against the Tornados.
The Old Bridge Rams Pop Warner Football and Cheerleading will be holding registration for boys and girls ages 5-15 at their clubhouse located on Marlboro Road. Registration will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 30, May 14 and May 15. A $10 discount will be applied to all registrations completed before June 1. For more information, call (732) 254 0640 or visit the Web site at www.obrams.com.