By John Orrell, Contributing Writer
Worcester – St. John’s High boys’ varsity soccer head coach Ken Salsman never enjoys seeing his team suffer a season-ending loss, but one would be hard-pressed to find a more humble and refreshing coaching outlook should the ball not bounce in his Pioneers favor.
Such was the case on November 11 at Worcester’s Commerce Bank Field at Foley Stadium when his second-seed squad faced off versus third-seed South High in Division 1 semifinal action with a trip to the district championship on the line. South knocked home a pair of goals while holding their opponent at bay to carry off a 2-0 victory. The win marks the Colonels first championship encounter since 1998.
The loss ends St. John’s season with a stellar 17-3-2 record.
“They’re a good team. They’ve worked really hard this year,” said Salsman of the powerful South High team. “They’re probably the top contender for Central Mass. They’re well-coached, are good guys. It was a spirited match and that’s all that matters. I just want to make sure that the St. John’s guys continue to improve. The program is back on the rise and our guys continue to show good sportsmanship and were gentlemen and played strong but played fair and that’s what matters.
“We weren’t playing our game today. That’s why I called our first timeout to get the guys to settle the ball. We do much better with the ball on the ground and no matter what, it’s a great day for soccer here in New England and we lost to a good team.”
It has been a meteoric rise of sorts for South’s varsity soccer program after compiling just a 7-6-7 record in 2013 before vaulting to near the top of the pack this season with a 14-1-5 mark. Defense was the team’s overall strong point with 13 shutouts as evidence.
The Colonels broke open a scoreless tie at the halfway mark of the opening half when Derrick Manu laced a perfect strike into the Pioneer net from middle front. The lefty shooter threaded a perfect boot for what would prove to be the game winner. Prince Gyau would seal the victory on a successful penalty kick with 5:43 remaining in the game.
Salsman post-game was unabashed in his respect for his opponent but also for the effort and sacrifice turned in by his squad all season.
“They [St. John’s] had a fantastic year and that’s all that matters,” he said. “Everybody’s healthy. No one got hurt. It was a good day for soccer. The better team today won. We wish them well in the district finals.”
Members of the 2015 St. John’s High boys’ varsity soccer team are seniors Adam French, Tom Goddard, Sal Hughes, John Massarelli, Byron Morataya, along with juniors Kyle Archambault, Sam Burns, Dylan Clune, John Fay, Christian Jordan, Nick Mucci, Joe Rezuke, Dawson Ritchie, Kevin Schwalm, Tim Smith, Brendan Wall and Kyle Walsh.
Sophomores include Connor Driscoll, Jake Hamel, Hamza Khalid, Vincent Lagomarsino and freshmen Alex Kovacs and Ben Shaw. Captains were French, Smith, Schwalm and Archambault.