Boys soccer dominates O’Connell 8-0
The boys soccer team annihilated the John O’Connell Boilermakers 8-0 on Jan. 24 at home.
Sophomore striker Alejandro Palos fights for the ball with a O’Connell defender
The Cardinals started the match off strong, with sophomore striker Alejandro Palos scoring a hat trick (three goals) in the first seven minutes. With help from the midfield, Lowell continued to dominate the first half by sending a barrage of high balls over O’Connell’s backline, creating great chances for the forwards. Though some opportunities were wasted–two prime shots ricocheting off the crossbar–the Cardinals managed to capitalize on the Boilermakers’ mistakes and scored four more goals.
Senior midfielder Luis Fonseca keeps his eyes on the ball.
With four minutes left in the first half, the Cardinals continued with their aggressive offensive strategy. Newly subbed-in freshman midfielder Luca Ficano-Latimer received an assist into the box and found his shot in the back of the net. This shot marked Ficano-Latimer’s first goal for the Cardinals, and his teammates on the field instantaneously swarmed him and the players on the bench jumped up and shouted with excitement. Ficano-Latimer was also ecstatic after the game saying, “It’s nice because everyone on the team is supporting me.”
During half time, head coach Juan Lopez instructed the team to stop scoring because of the league’s mercy rule, which limits scoring to a 10-goal gap between the teams. Lopez also made sure to emphasize on-ball possession, wanting the team to keep the ball and not take as many chances. The Cardinals followed his advice, allowing O’Connell to push into their half of the field while maintaining control of the ball through long strings of passes. Even though the Boilermakers pressured Lowell’s defensive line, the score remained 8-0 throughout the second half until the game’s end.
Senior co-captain defender Pablo Herrarte dribbles the ball, getting ready to pass it to a teammate.
According to the co-captain senior Pablo Herrarte, the Cardinals need to keep the momentum gained with their win against the Boilermakers, and continue honing in on their shooting. “Something we can improve on is still our clinical finishing,” Herrarte said. “We did miss a couple of goals, and that’s something we can work on all the time.”
The Cardinals will be facing off against the division’s leading team, the Mission Bears, at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 29 at Mission.
