On Thursday Sept. 8th, 2016, the Bel Air Bobcat’s Boys’ Soccer Team fell to the Falcons of Severna Park, 3-1, at Anne Arundel Parks and Rec.
Bel Air came into the game having knocked off Anne Arundel county powerhouse, Broadneck, 3-0. The Cats hoped that their earlier victory in the week would propel them past Severna Park, but that wasn’t exactly the case.
Bel Air came out flat in the first half, conceding an early goal to Midfielder Keaton Bathras. To make matters worse, starting left back, Josh Holcomb pulled up with an injury, sidelining him for the rest of the day. The Bobcats had a multitude of injury problems: Central Defender Noah Rusinko, Striker Andrew Sin, and Goalie Cam Riley came into the game lacking 100% fitness. They were certainly missed throughout the duration of the contest.
“Today [Thursday] was a tough loss, in a highly contested battle between two very strong teams,” states Head Coach Dom Rose. “We need to come out strong on Saturday and clean up our defensive errors, and get back to winning.”
The second half was much better for Bel Air. The halftime break allowed the boys to cool down and hydrate in the intense heat. Senior Captain Gray Harper started off the second half with a bang, scoring a great goal into the left corner to level the score line 1-1. But, the Falcons made a late second half surge, adding two controversial goals in two minutes to ultimately win the game.
“We had a tough game against Severna Park we just couldn’t finish the final ball. We didn’t play terrible but it wasn’t great,” says Captain Vince Rose. “The important thing is to learn from our loss and move on to the next game this Saturday. All our captains need to step up and lead.”
Bel Air must quickly gather themselves as they prepare to face off against reigning 3A State Champs, Oakdale, on Saturday, away from home. This will be an enormous opportunity for the Bobcats and a true test of who they really are as a team. And it won’t get any easier for the boys as the go up against yet another highly ranked team in Manchester Valley on Tuesday. Be sure to wish the Boys’ Soccer Team good luck, as they come to the close of a very tough stretch in their 2016 season.