The 2019 season begins with a victory! In a game dominated by your beloved Huskies, neither team could find the back of the net in the first half. GK Junior Said, defensemen Eric Friedman, Ryan Ross, Jake Frappier, Antonios Sarelakos, Jack Segalla, & Jack Mallett all played well to deny Colts Neck scoring chances. Noah Pagan opened the scoring off a feed from Andrew Battapaglia. Anders Nielson netted the game winner when he calmly tucked in a Connor Signorile volley that just missed, hitting the crossbar & rebounding to Anders.
The extra period also saw the Huskies dominate. Owen Nappi controlled the midfield & found Rocco Loporto for Rocco's first Matawan goal. Victor Paz capped the day's scoring with an unassisted goal. Tim Seldura patrolled the net to ensure the shutout.
9/20 Ocean
Avery talented Ocean team visited Strathmore and came away with a hardfought victory. After seeing Ocean dominate the first half to the score of 2-0, your beloved Huskies made some adjustments & gave Ocean all they could handle in the second half. Andrew Battapaglia enjoyed a high quality match as he controlled the midfield all day. Nico Skeete scored the lone goal on a Sal Cassano feed.
9/23 Holmdel
A warm day in Holmdel saw your beloved Huskies put together a rather lackluster performance to drop our second game in a row. A common thread is occuring where we get beat due to a lack of marking up in the midfield & defensive third. Antonios Sarelakos was dangerous from his outside half position. Ryan Ross patrolled the defense & Junior Said made many fine saves to keep the Huskies in the game.
The developmental period was evenly matched. Sean Sobocinski & Mike McCabe controlled the midfield. Tim Seldura earned a clean sheet in the net.
9/25 Thompson
This was a tough game. After spotting Thompson 6, yes 6, goals in the first half, your beloved Huskies proved you can't measure the heart of a Husky by still playing hard & giving it our all in the second half. Ryan Ross had the games lone goal off a deflection from a corner kick.
9/27 Thorne
This game saw your beloved Huskies dominate in just about every aspect with the exception of the most important one: scoring goals. We dominated possession, 50/50 balls, scoring chances, shots on goal, and defense. But, on one broken play in front of our net, Thorne found the goal to steal the win. Jack Segalla played a fantastic game from his outside back position. Junior Said made many terrific saves in the goal. Owen Nappi & Noah Pagan helped control the midfield. Sal Cassano, Nico Skeete, & Connor Signorile created many scoring chances. But, we just could not capitalize on anything & had many near misses.
The developmental period also saw some domination without any scoring. Mike McCabe & Victor Paz controlled possession of the ball. The backs made sure Thorne really didn't have any scoring chances.
10/2 Neptune
Again, your beloved Huskies put forth a great effort. Again, we dominated much of the game. Again, we just had a hard time putting the ball in the back of the net. Down 2-0, Andrew Battapaglia served a corner that Nico Skeete rammed home to cut the lead in half. But that was all our scoring as we had to push forward & Neptune got a late transition goal to ice the game. Sean Hart & Jack Segalla played great games in the back. Junior Said made many dazzling saves in the net, including stopping 2 breakaways. Anders Nielson controlled the midfield.
10/8 Bayshore
Oh wow, this is getting repetitive. Another game played well. Another game with much domination. Another game we just couldn't score enough. Our lone goal came when Sal Cassano slammed home a Nico Skeete cross in the second half to cut the lead in half. Sean Hart & Junior Said consistently shut down Bayshore's attack. Cassano & Andrew Battapaglia controlled the midfield, demonstrating that when they have time, they can trap & pass & possess the ball. Antonios Sarelakos & Skeete had many dangerous opportunities in front of the goal, but we could not find the back of the net enough.
It was the same story in the developmental period. Mike McCabe & Anders Nielson controlled the midfield. Jake Frappier created many dangerous chances up top. But Bayshore connected on a counter attack to score the only goal.
10/10 Hazlet
The Huskies erupt for 3 goals, the most so far in 1 game this season! Unfortunately, Hazlet answered with 8 goals of their own. Off a feed from Mike McCabe, Connor Signorile blasted home our first score. Antonios Sarelakos found Andrew Battapaglia, who ripped our second goal. Ethan Frimere then collected a ball in the 18 & chipped the keeper to end the scoring. Sean Hart & Eric Friedman played inspired all game.
10/11 Long Branch
Yes! Finally! Your beloved Huskies put forth an incredible effort & showed what we are capable of by playing a complete game on both sides of the ball. After Long Branch spotted us an own goal from a Noah Pagan cross just a minute into the game, Sal Cassano beat his man & sliced a cross that Pagan ran onto & one-timed home. Jack Segalla, Ryan Ross, Sean Hart, Jake Frappier, & Junior Said played outstanding defense, consistently keeping LB out of our area. Seconds after LB scored on a broken play, Andrew Battapaglia hit a perfect corner that Ross headed into the back of the net to ice the game. You just can't measure the heart of a Husky.
10/18 Holmdel
As Charles Dickens would say, this game was a tale of two halves. The first frame saw your beloved Huskies play less-than-inspired soccer, spotting Holmdel 3 goals. The second half was much better, tying second place Holmdel 0-0. Owen Nappi was dominate from his outside half position. Tim Seldura was everywhere at goalkeeper.
10/21 Thompson
On an otherwise beautiful day, Thompson proved why they are the undefeated league champions by winning the last game of the 2019 season. Thank you to all the players & their families for putting your hearts & souls into this season. Good luck to the 8th graders the rest of this year & high school. Have a great rest of your school year!
