Wildcats Upend Lancers In Season Opener

Right from the beginning the Bethel High boys soccer team dominated Notre Dame-Fairfield (0-1), scoring a pair of goals early on, foreshadowing a blowout that never developed. Despite the quick start, and a staggering 24 shots, the Wildcats (1-0) struggled to find the back of the net for most of the game and had to settle for a 3-0 win in their season opener.

“We got the result, we got the shutout,” Head Coach Tony Fernandes said. “However, we missed a lot of opportunities… in a different game maybe that costs us. I think we had over 20 shots, and scored three goals. That percentage is not good enough. At the end of the day, at least we won the game, you learn from it and you try and get better.”

Joey Merheb opened the scoring 10 minutes into the game, when his shot from the top of the box deflected off a defender before finding the back of the net. Less than five minutes later Gabriel Binda buried a cross from Andriy Paparo, but after that the offense seemed to dry up despite the constant pressure.

“We kind of stopped playing our game,” Fernandes said. “Maybe you score one or two goals and you start pushing for goals, instead of playing and passing.”

Despite a flurry of chances, the Wildcats went into the half with just two goals. When the second half started, it played out much like the first, with the Wildcats dominating the ball but failing to distance themselves from the Lancers despite several chances.

While striving for that elusive third goal, the Wildcats hit a crossbar, a post and had beaten the Lancers’ goalie only to be denied by the head of a defenseman.

“I told the guys, you gotta be a little selfish in the final third,” Fernandes said. “We preach teamwork and passing and stuff like that, but in and the goal area, that’s where you can be a little greedy. That’s where you gotta be hungry for the goal.”

Heeding his coach’s advice, Paparo was a threat throughout the second half. Constantly attacking the net and looking for a shot, before breaking through 20 minutes in on a rocket shot from just inside the box. The goal was setup by Lucas Machado, who was a key part of most attacks throughout the game.

“He’s got phenomenal skills on the ball,” Fernandes said of the Brazilian transfer student. “This is a different style of game than he’s used to. He’s used to shorter passes and stuff like that, but he’s got tremendous talent on the ball.”

Following Paparo’s goal, the Wildcats once again found themselves unable to finish despite a growing number of chances, which was Fernandes’ primary concern after the game.

“[We need] some composure in front of the goal,” Fernandes said. “If you’ve got the time and if you’re not positioned well, position yourself, take the extra touch. Or it’s just a simple as instead of trying to kill the ball, just find the corner. At the end of the day we got the win, maybe we’re saving our goals for another game.”

After an unbelievable run in last year’s state playoffs, Troy Deyo was hardly tested in net and needed to make just one save to get the shutout.

“We learned a lot and we’ve to get better, that’s the bottom line,” Fernandes said. “We talk about that in practice every day, the key is getting better, game by game, week by week, day by day, and if we can do that, then we can do some things.”

Bethel’s next game is Thursday at Stratford High at 3:45 p.m.