Blue Dragons remain undefeated
The East Windsor U8 Blue Dragons continued their undefeated season by beating Manalapan for the second time on June 2 by a score of 4 to 2. Once again the goalies and the powerful offense of the Blue Dragons created the winning formula to keep their championship run alive.
In the first half Jayden Baffoe-Bonnie and Dylan Stables defended the net. East Windsor scored its first goal on a pinpointed pass from Lionel Aguilar to Jayden Baffoe-Bonnie for the score. Manalapan came storming back and Dylan Stables saved a bullet shot. Then Alexander Garcia broke away from defenders at midfield and went all the way to up the score to 2-0 before the half ended.
In the second half Ilias Bettendorf took over as goalie. Manalapan started the half with a quick score followed by a free kick to tie the score 2-2. The Blue Dragons roared back with a beautiful pass from Sebastian Rincon to Alexander Garcia for the go ahead goal to make the score 3-2. Then midfielder Jayden Baffoe-Bonnie pushed the ball through to Zachary Banegas for another goal. Dylan Stables went back in as goalie. Manalapan tried to score on a breakaway, but Stables came out and challenged and made the save. Final score was 4-2. The midfielders held the team together and Sebastian Rincon contributed to several defensive plays.
The East Windsor Blue Dragons were back on the pitch Saturday and Sunday as part of the WWPSA’s Sunburst Tournament at Zaitz Park in West Windsor. They played Princeton FC Porto and Holmdel FC Barcelona on Saturday and Watchung Hills SA Madrid and the Hibernian AA Celtic on Sunday, sweeping all four games. With a record of 4-0, the Blue Dragons took first place in the tournament.
Arsenal picks up two wins
The EW PAL U10 Girls Arsenal went on the road and picked up two victories in MOSA Premier League play. First, the Arsenal ladies played a midweek game vs. Manalapan Hot Shots and won 4-2.
The Arsenal dominated play for most of the game, moving the ball around the field with great precision. Angelina Benitez opened the scoring in the first half, quickly followed by a goal from Abby Carter.
In the second half it was more great ball movement by wingers Anna Zappola and Ally Szelag. The third Arsenal goal came when Szelag blasted home a corner kick from Rachael Charsky. Charsky then iced the game with goal on a penalty kick after Benitez was taken down in the box.
In another contest, the drive was long and the opponent tough as Arsenal traveled in stormy conditions to Toms River to play the Toms River Sharks.
The size and strength of the Sharks players is always a challenge for Arsenal but they were just as physical this time around and their ball movement lately has been second to none.
Alayna Giampolo scored in the first minute of the game with a goal assisted by Ally Szelag. After the Sharks tied the game in the first half, the Arsenal refocused and dominated the second half with aggressive smart play from Charlotte Garcia and wingers Tanya Aughenbaugh. The game was decided with five minutes to play as Marcella Hirschman notched the game winning goal assisted by Angelina Benitez. Radha Ghate was strong once again in goal and preserved the victory with several key saves.
