Spartans hold off Warriors 1-0
BURNT HILLS, N.Y. » The Burnt HillsBallston Lake boys soccer team took the first round of the Section II Class A quarterfinals in the bracket that could be dubbed ‘Survivor Series’ as three Suburban Council teams represent the majority of the four-team bracket.
The No. 2 seeded Spartans’ Glenn Ramos tapped in the lone goal during the 19th minute and then held off No. 7 Averill Park Thursday night at Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake’s Centennial Field. Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake advances to Wednesday’s semifinal vs. Suburban Council rival Mohonasen. Kickoff is 5 p.m. at Watervliet High School.
The contest resembled a typical Suburban Council contest, physical, intense and quick. In the first meeting Burnt Hills won 3-0 at home Sept. 7.
“We ended up playing without seven starters that game,” Averill Park Coach John Knight said. “We had a couple that got hurt that game, (Captain Colin Zieske), (Logan Bielawski) got hurt early in that game.
“This is the first game all year that we had all of our players available and we still don’t have our starting goalie. He was available as a field player, not as a goalie. They’re a good team and it’s a different game this time of year.”
The Spartans were able to send wave after wave into the final third of the pitch against the Warriors defense throughout the first half and finally saw Ramos convert for the precious one-goal lead.
“When they come forward they come after you again and again,” Knight said. “They defend, defend, defend and then when there is an opportunity they bring numbers forward and press and pound on you. “We were kind of doing the same thing I thought back to them and maybe in the second half I think we had better possession, maybe not possession, we connected better and once we moved Colin Zieske to the midfield that made a big difference.”
While the Spartans had the per-
fect plan, Ramos’ goal was anything but perfect.
“There was a cluster and then it fell to my foot,” Ramos said. “I got wide open, hit it with my left and it just squeezed in.
“I had chances, unfortunately I didn’t finish them. I probably could have had a few more, just didn’t get the right hit on the ball.”
Burnt Hills Coach George Dudas will take the lone goal along with the multiple opportunities for the remainder of the playoffs.
“All you can do is ask them to create those chances,” Dudas said. “You create them and eventually you want to be able to capitalize off them. As long as we’re creating those and getting those opportunities, we would love to finish them off because then it makes it a lot easier when you have a two-goal cushion.
“The one thing that you’re concerned with in that situation is that you’ve got some of our midfielders also getting involved in a run like that, they stop it, now they have a counter attack.”
While Knight and his Warriors travel back to Rennselaer County, Burnt Hills will have time to prepare for another Suburban Council foe in Mohonasen courtesy of the Section II seeding committee.
“I know there are only nine teams in this section, but you have to wonder why Queensbury doesn’t have to see any of the three Suburban teams until the final, because we would have really like to have played them again,” Knight said. “Whatever Suburban side comes out of our bracket has a chance to win the whole thing.”
Dudas may not have agreed with this year’s seeding that placed undefeated Queensbury on the same side as South Glens Falls, Albany Academy and Gloversville, the winner of a first-round play-in game versus Hudson Falls, but has fought tough brackets before.
“It’s almost like being a Foothills Challenge and a Suburban Challenge on opposite sides of the bracket,” Dudas said. “We know each other so well that now we’re just pounding each other.
“We’ve had other years where we had tough draws and had to work our way through it, it’s the same thing all over again. The thing is you take it one game at a time and you battle.”