Tobito scores 2 to take Rams past Panthers

PRINCETON » The Hightstown High and Princeton Day School boys soccer teams went at each other Saturday as if they do so on a regular basis.

An unaware bystander probably would have been surprised to learn that the teams were finishing up their first week of the 2018 season.

The Rams and Panthers went at each other more like it was a Mercer County Tournament game instead of the second game for PDS and the third for Hightstown.

In the end, the visiting Rams prevailed by clinging to the slim lead they had opened in the first half to grab a 2-1 win over the Panthers.

“We had a lot of injuries coming into today’s game, so a lot of other players stepped up and helped us get this win,” Hightstown senior forward Daniel Tobito said.

As proud as Tobito was of the hard work the Rams’ defenders did in containing Princeton Day School’s impressive attack, his teammates were delighted with the way Tobito rebounded from a 3-1 road win at Allentown Friday in which he was held scoreless.

All Tobito did was come out and score both tallies for Hightstown Saturday to give head coach George Wolkiewicz’ team a chance to win.

“I was able to get open more today,” Tobito said. “I always concentrate on trying to score goals. I try to play my style.”

Like any good striker, that involves attacking the net, which both teams did feverishly Saturday.

As the game progressed, both teams’ defenses learned to adjust, but not before Tobito got the visitors on the board first when he converted a lead from sophomore Dylan Vargas.

Not long after that, the Panthers were awarded a penalty kick, which their University of Connecticutbound senior striker Wesley Leggett put away.

The score stayed even until Tobito made things happen again with 8:23 left in the first half.

Tobito made a run at PDS first-half goalkeeper Bruno Cucchi with a defender on him from the top of the box. But when neither player took the ball from Tobito’s feet, the swift striker pushed the ball to the side and got a clean shot into the vacated net.

“They broke through our line at points, so we tried to make it tougher for them to get shots off,” Panthers senior back Coby Auslander said. “We really came on at the end of the game. I thought we were going to tie the game. We need to start our games like that and things might go a little better.” Hightstown(2-1) 2 0 — 2

PDS (1-1) 1 0 — 1

Goals: Tobito 2 (H), Leggett (PDS); Assist: Vargas (H).

Shots: 8 (H), 7 (PDS); Saves: Cucchi 4, Rego 2 (H), Forst 5 (PDS).