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| Sacred Heart’s Evan Laferriere gets to the ball with his head before Holy Cross’ Evan Kaczmarek can in Tuesday’s showdown at Waterville Park. Laferriere had the only goal in a 1-0 victory. (Copyright, Sports on CT-69) |
It was feisty, even a little nasty at times.
Would you expect anything less when Waterbury boys soccer rivals Sacred Heart and Holy Cross get together? The latest meeting was at Waterville Park on Tuesday, and it was a physical battle that produced some temper flashes and yellow cards.
Holy Cross controlled play and had the majority of chances in the first half, but Evan Laferriere made a rare Sacred Heart opportunity count late in the opening 40 minutes. Adam Pepin crossed the ball toward the net in the final minutes. The ball squirted through the big mitts of Holy Cross keeper Kyle Moser. Laferriere and a Crusader raced toward the ball, but the Heart senior got there first and knocked it in the goal.
It was the only one Moser let up. Unfortunately for him and Holy Cross, the offense couldn’t convert its chances. The Crusaders are 0-2 this season, and they have scored just one goal in 160 minutes of play. The Hearts have a pair of 1-0 victories to their credit, and both goals have come from Laferriere.
Holy Cross controlled the ball in the first half and had better ideas when it came to what to do with it. Brian Silva hooked a left-footed shot from outside the box toward the top left corner of the goal. Only a sprawling save by Sacred Heart keeper Isaac Gonzalez kept the shot from being a goal. Gonzalez played because starting keeper Noah Francisco was hurt in practice on Monday, according to a story from Steve Barlow of the Waterbury Republican-American. Barlow also noted that it was Sacred Heart’s first win in the city rivalry since 2009.
Moser made a great save in his own right. A tackle in the box early in the second half brought a penalty kick for Sacred Heart’s Marco Sanchez, but Moser batted it over the crossbar and out. The save fired up both Moser and his teammates.
Holy Cross had a big chance late in the second half. Silva tore in toward goal but Gonzalez deflected the ball. With Gonzalez on the ground, Garrett Jones came to the rescue and forced a corner kick. Sacred Heart kept the equalizer from occurring and held on for the victory.
PHOTOS: Click here for images from Tuesday’s soccer match.
