LYNNFIELD ― The Lynnfield soccer team brought its scoring boots as they defeated the Rockport Vikings 4-0 on Wednesday evening.
The first five minutes of the match were spent running up and down the field, but Lynnfield struck first as senior Nickson Joseph got the ball past Rockport’s senior goalkeeper Samuel Finer to give the Pioneers a lead in the sixth minute of the match. Luckily for Lynnfield, that wouldn’t be the last time the senior found the back of the net.
Lynnfield head coach Brent Munroe said after the match that Joseph has been great this season, especially seeing that it is his first season on the varsity squad.
“He put a lot of time and effort into the offseason and he’s putting the ball in the net for us and we’re thrilled for it,” Munroe said. “I think he’s having a great time so we couldn’t be any happier for him.”
Joseph nearly got his first helper of the match, but junior Owen Klee would send his shot over the crossbar in the 10th minute from just outside the box.
As the first half progressed, Lynnfield continued to get more and more comfortable on the pitch. They controlled possession and at times were able to press the Vikings in their own third.
In the 12th minute, the Pioneers got another opportunity via a free kick 10 yards outside the box; senior Jake Mallet fired a shot on net but Finer made a diving save. They continued to show their skill as freshman Dillion Riley displayed some fancy footwork with a heel-flick pass to junior Alex Gentile, but the midfielder sent the ball wide of the post.
While the Vikings suffered a defeat, Finer had an impressive performance. He made a spectacular one-on-one save in the 30th minute of the half along with a handful of other quality saves. He continued his impressive effort by making another breakaway save before the end of the first half.
After the Rockport loss, head coach Jason Rutkauskas thought that the goalkeeper had a great showing on Wednesday night.
“Our keeper played outstanding, he really kept us in the game,” said the coach. “Lynnfield is a very aggressive team. They put pressure on us all game and we just couldn’t really make anything happen.”
Before the end of the first half, Mallet nearly got a goal off a corner, but his header in the 37th minute couldn’t find the back of the net.
For the first 10 minutes of the second half, the Pioneers continued to dominate possession. The Pioneers got a lot out of junior midfielder Henry Caulfield. He showed some great skill on the ball and was able to get by defenders with ease.
For the rest of the second half, Rockport went on to withstand the pressure in a solid defensive performance. Finer would add to his save total in the 60th minute of the match as he deflected a shot from Gentile over the net.
Joseph scored his second goal of the game in the 65th minute to put the game away for the Pioneers. Moments later, Klee found the back of the net to give Lynnfield a 3-0 lead. Four minutes later, after Finer made another one-on-one save on Joseph, Klee was able to add to his tally, cleaning up a rebound for his second goal of the match.
Lynnfield now boasts a 4-2 record (3-0 in CAL). They get a break, too; they don’t head on the road to face Hamilton-Wenham until Sept. 20.
