WINTHROP — The Lynn Classical Rams took down the Winthrop Vikings in a physical battle 3-1 at Miller Field Thursday.
Someone must have forgotten to tell both teams that this was a scrimmage because the matchup between the Rams and the Vikings looked like a regular season game. The tackles came strong, and the energy was high, which made for an exhilarating soccer game.
Classical Head Coach Eric Moreno was obviously thrilled with the victory and even more thrilled to see a competitive game with the season around the corner.
“We start next week, so we already had it in our mind that this scrimmage was going to be, you know, taking it with the full varsity team, limiting the subs, and basically taking it like a real game,” said Moreno.
“I think they felt that — I told them that. The other team is the same; we start next week, so it is time to put it all together now,” he added.
For the entire first half of the scrimmage, each team would go back and forth and get some good runs, but the main theme of the half was physicality. Whether it was Classical or Winthrop, nobody was coming near the opposing goaltender untouched.
It wasn’t until there were about 17 minutes left in the game that Classical got on the board to take the lead. Jose Coral made a nice run to set up a penalty shot, and Elzon Hailmi buried the penalty to take a 1-0 lead.
The game was so heated that the goal led to a scuffle between the two teams, but it was quickly broken up.
While the game seemed like it would be the team who scored first won — the game opened up in the waning minutes. Winthrop ended up tying the game with a ridiculous goal from about the 25-yard line, and the game was tied at 1-1.
However, Classical retook the lead with a goal from Yahir Viveros, and Abbie DeLeon scored the dagger from about 20 yards out to seal the 3-1 victory.
In a highly contested contest, Winthrop Head Coach Phil Ronan could not have been happier with his team’s performance, even in a losing effort.
“We are a very young team; we have a lot of young players and older players that have never picked up a soccer ball in their lives, so I mean, where we were on day one and where we are today, I am thrilled,” said Ronan.
Heading into the regular season, Moreno is excited about the roster he has constructed but can’t be sure how it will fare until the season begins.
“It is a lot of young, fresh kids. Everyone has a great attitude which is my favorite part of it all, but we do not really know yet,” said Moreno.
“It is just the start; we have to fine-tune some things, and once we do, we will see what we’re capable of,” he added.
Michael Coughlin Jr. can be reached at [email protected].
