LYNN — In a 1-1 tie with just under 12 minutes remaining in the game, both teams decided that they were going to press the issue and attempt to steal a goal in the final minutes, rather than playing not to lose.
The strategy proved fruitful for Classical, but Malden paid for it.
With less than two minutes remaining, the Rams held possession of the ball at midfield and were able to set up a sequence of passes that broke down Malden’s defense on the left side. Classical forward Wainer Nolasco Hernandez was waiting in the middle of the attacking zone, just outside the penalty box when he received a pass from the left wing. He took one touch with the ball and, knowing that he didn’t have much time with Malden defenders collapsing in on him, he flicked the ball cleanly towards the top of the goal.
And just like that, Hernandez had broken the tie, with his team now seconds away from pulling out the victory. The Rams held it down for the rest of the game and beat Malden by a score of 2-1 thanks to Hernandez’s heroics.
A few moments before the game winning goal, Assistant Coach Jack Erekson, who was filling in for Head Coach Eric Morenoas, who was unavailable for the game, called timeout to set up a plan for his team’s final push. The timeout helped the players to reset themselves and get a few last sips of water before they made a few last runs at the net that would hopefully result in a late goal. Hernandez talked about his team’s belief in each other and what was said to motivate the squad in the huddle.
“We told each other we can do this and just fight to the end,” the senior forward said. “That’s what we did, and we got the result we wanted.”
It was a tale of two halves for the Rams Thursday evening. Though there were no goals in the first half, Malden dominated control of the ball and had significantly more scoring chances than Classical. The Rams remained poised and leaned on great defensive performances by sophomore goalie Santos Emmanuel Alvarez and senior defender and captain, Ryan Dunn.
Coming out of halftime, Classical was able to flip the script and immediately came out of the locker room, firing on all cylinders. After just nine minutes of play, Hernandez scored the first goal of the game from around 15 yards out when he sent a shot from the right hash that deflected off of a Malden defender and dribbled past the goaltender.
“That first goal was all as a team; we pressured together, we got the ball on their half, I got the pass, and put it behind the net,” Hernandez said.
Erekson said that coming out of the half, he relied on his captains’ leadership to set the tone.
“I trusted my captains. We have a great group of leadership here on this team right now,” he said. “I kind of put it in their hands and said, ‘this is your game to win now guys’ and they came out firing in the second half. I couldn’t be more proud of them.
The Rams appeared to be heading towards a 1-0 victory until Malden defenseman Zechariah Mayne Foster tied the game up at the 11:45 mark in the second half. The goal came after Head Coach Jeremiah Smith called timeout to settle his team down as they desperately needed a goal. Malden’s celebration of the tying score wouldn’t last long, however, as Hernandez went on to silence the Golden Tornadoes with his second goal of the match, giving his team the victory.
“The guys really wanted to go for the win,” Ereckson said. “I trusted them, and I’m sure happy that I did. They earned that win.”
“Our team is really strong, and I know we can accomplish anything we put our minds to,” Hernandez added.
With the last minute goal, the Rams are now above .500 and improve to a 5-4-1 record. Their next matchup is Saturday, September 24th, when Catholic Memorial of West Roxbury comes to town.
Ryan Vermette can be reached at [email protected]
