COMETS, EAGLES TIE IN SWC SHOWDOWN

Coach Dore is confident Eagles will be ready for postseason, wants team to finish strong

Avon is one of the top teams in the area.

So when Amherst tied the Eagles in a Southwestern Conference matchup, 0-0, Oct. 3 at the Amherst Junior High Complex, the general consensus was a positive result.

The Comets (7-5-1, 3-3-2) got a huge game from senior goalkeeper Brandon Hazelgrove, stopping nine shots, mostly in the first half.

Avon (10-2-2, 6-0-2) displayed strong possession, but Amherst forced the Eagles into long shots, and the Eagles outshot the Comets,

18-13.

“Avon has really good shooters but their shooters are easy to anticipate, so it made it a bit easier for me,” Hazelgrove said. “But my defenders helped support me. They never got a good shot because my defense was always on them and we got them taking quick shots.”

In the second half, Amherst’s Ethan London missed a wide open shot off the crossbar when Avon goalkeeper Ryan Poling went out of position in the 45th minute.

The Comets’ defense came up big in the 50th minute when Anthony LaRosa kicked the ball out from crossing the goal line.

With both teams stagnant throughout, the Eagles had one gasp in the 79th minute when Nick Minotti flanked the left field side and ripped a shot that Hazelgrove stopped with one hand up high.

“Amherst is a good team and I thought we did enough to create opportunities,” Avon coach Chris Dore said. “But in this sport, you have to put your chances away. I thought we were good in just about every other area other than up top. It’s been a struggle. We still have a lot to look forward to.”

The primary goal defensively for the Eagles was trying to stop forward Gavin Velazquez, and defender Noah Lindon was on him throughout.

Velazquez is one of the top strikers in the area, and Lindon one of the best defenders, which set up a great matchup.

“We knew they would play over the top a lot and we had to keep him in front of us and stay disciplined,” Lindon said.

Amherst coach Drew Biedenbach knew they wouldn’t out-possess Avon and still came away pleased with the showing they had.

“That’s a good result,” he said. “Obviously Avon is a great team, first-place in the conference. I told our guys going in that we’re going to get limited chances, but if we get it, we’ve got to take it. We had a crossbar and couple crosses where guys didn’t get to the far post. If we make those little extra runs, it could have been 1-0.”

Avon is used to playing in low scoring affairs in the past couple seasons, and coach Dore is confident his Eagles will be ready for the postseason.

“We have to finish strong,” he added. “It’s a long season with 16 games, that’s a lot of games especially when your goal is to play better each game. But the tournament is in sight and we still have the conference to play for. Our goal is to continue to improve.”

Coming soon

There will be more coverage on Amherst’s boys soccer team in the coming days. Check back in The Morning Journal both online and in print.

BY RANDY MEYERS — THE MORNING JOURNAL Ethan London of Amherst and Drew Whited of Avon run to the ball near the sideline during the first half on Oct. 3.

BY RANDY MEYERS — THE MORNING JOURNAL Avon’s Nick Minotti controls the ball at the sideline in front of Lucas Snowden of Amherst during the first half on Oct. 3.

RANDY MEYERS — THE MORNING JOURNAL Ben Biedenbach of Amherst heads the ball over Nick Minotti of Avon during the first half on Oct. 3.