BEVERLY — It wasn’t the ideal start to the season, but the Swampscott boys soccer team opened up its 2020 season on the road Tuesday afternoon, falling 4-1 to Northeastern Conference foe Beverly.
Alex Greenfield scored the lone goal for the Big Blue, while Chris Hollenbach had the assist.
Beverly struck early in the first quarter despite some strong play from Swampscott, getting a fast-break goal from Andrew Schweizer about seven minutes into the game to make it 1-0 Panthers. The score remained there until the end of the first, when Teo Berbic netted the first of his three goals to put Beverly ahead 2-0.
Berbic scored again to make it 3-0 with just over seven minutes to play in the second quarter, capitalizing on a rebound after a corner kick by the Panthers.
But after that, Swampscott turned things around. The Big Blue started to push the pace and get a number of opportunities in the offensive zone. It all came to a head when Hollenbach slipped a pass to Greenfield in the open, and Greenfield lobbed a shot up over the Beverly goalkeeper’s head to make it 3-1.
But the momentum didn’t last. While Swampscott continued to play solid soccer and force a few opportunities, Beverly was able to do the same. The Panthers secured the final insurance goal with just over three minutes to play in the game when Berbic found the back of the net to complete his hat trick.
Swampscott (0-1) will return to the field Friday afternoon (4) on the road at Masconomet.
