Eagles Blank Southwick
SHEFFIELD, Mass. – Darius Taliaferro scored in the 13th minute, and the Mount Everett boys soccer team went on to a 1-0 win over Southwick on Monday afternoon.
Ian Lanoue stopped seven shots in goal for the Eagles, who came up strong against the Rams’ pressure, particularly in the latter stages of the first half.
“The back line’s been strong all year,” Mount Everett coach Joe McSpiritt said. “Philip Enoch is a senior in the back, kind of leading it. But I thought they did a good job.
“They stayed organized the whole game. Our center mids did a really good job covering in the middle of the field. And we were able to keep them out.”
Taliaferro got Mount Everett on the board with 27 minutes, 1 second left in the first half when he fired home a shot from the top of the 18 off an assist from Guthrie Davis.
That turned out to be the Eagles’ best scoring chance of the first half, when the field started to tilt Southwick’s way over the last 15 minutes or so.
Coming out of the break, things were more even.
The Rams got a couple of dangerous opportunities on set piece plays, but Mount Everett carried the play most of the second half.
“I thought we were a little more organized in the second half, in terms of positioning,” McSpiritt said. “In terms of positioning, we kind of kept our shape a little bit better. And, through that, we’re able to get the ball up the field and create a couple of chances.”
One of the best again came off the right foot of Taliaferro in the closing minutes, when he took a long cross off a header from Davis and ripped a shot that went just wide of the near post.
With the win, Mount Everett improved to 3-1-1 heading into Wednesday’s home game against Lenox – like Southwick, a non-league game but a more familiar foe.
“I knew [Southwick] was going to be strong, and they were,” McSpiritt said. “We don’t have any common opponents. We haven’t played them, that I know of. So I was really happy that our team came out ready to play, no matter who it was.
“I’m happy with where we are right now. Always looking to improve, but we’re playing well so far. We’re in a competitive league. Every game is going to be competitive. And we just have to find a way to win.”