By Sophie Kilbride
Opinion Editor
Washington College men’s soccer topped the King’s College Monarchs 1-0 in their match on Sept. 18. The Shoremen ignited play early as sophomore midfielder Tucker Sprano sent a shot ringing off the right post just three minutes into the contest.
From the kickoff, the Shoremen dominated possession over the Monarchs. Time after time, Monarch defenders struggled to escape the Shoremen’s high defensive press and were forced to play several dangerous balls back to their keeper.
With 15:30 left in the first half, Shoremen midfielders won possession from a King’s goal kick. After stringing a series of passes together, the Shoremen were deep in Monarch territory when junior midfielder Tyler Davidson gathered a stray pass and took Kings’ goalie Ben Valkenburg one-on-one.
Valkenburg got his hands on Davidson’s shot, but the play fueled Shoremen momentum moving into the first half ’s final minutes.
“Possession-based play is very important to our team culture. Our primary focus is how we can win every game that we play, and dominating possession of the ball is a core component of achieving this,” Sprano said.
The Shoremen thrived on offensive counterattacks by utilizing the field’s outside channels to fuel goal-scoring opportunities. Sophomore midfielder Tshazi Kamau shined on the wing, servicing several crosses into the box that Monarch defenders barely managed to divert.
The Shoremen outshot King’s 8-2 in the first half and had plenty of chances to score before halftime, but they could not find the back of the net.
“In our practices, we rarely work explicitly on possession, but it is an element of focus in many of our drills,” Sprano said.
With just over 35:00 left in the second half, Sprano found the ball at center field and caught Kamau making a run between two Monarch defenders. Sprano slipped a long pass in the path of Kamau’s run, forcing Valkenburg to desert his box. The Shoremen went up 1-0 as Kamau took a dribble around Valkenburg, setting himself up for an easy shot into the left corner.
From there, the Shoremen continued to outshoot the Monarchs 5-2. While their offense produced exciting chances, the Shoremen’s defensive line adeptly escaped defensive pressure from Monarch attackers.
With 13:11 left in the second half, junior defender Ryan Sharpley had to make a sliding dive to clear a well-placed cross from a Monarch attacker into the box.
Although the Shoremen have recorded some early losses, their determination and scrappy defense against King’s indicate that if they maintain their hard work, the 2024 season will be another successful one.
A positive result is important for the Shoremen, who faced the fifth ranked Dickinson Red Devils on Saturday. WC played their ranked adversaries to a 0-0 draw.
“This win is very good for team morale as it is our first home win of the season, but our mindset going into the Dickinson game is that it is a necessary win as it is the first in-conference match, and this has not changed,” Sprano said.
Photo by Darius Kesey.
Photo Caption: Shoremen soccer ties fifth ranked Dickinson 0-0 in Centennial Conference home opener on Sept. 21.