Skippers Balanced Attack Gets Best of Knights

The North Kingstown High School boy's soccer team defeated Central High School by a score of 4-1 Tuesday evening at the Anthony Perry Athletic Complex.

Junior midfielder Chris Hess scored two goals, while senior forward Nick Ferguson added a goal and an assist. Senior midfielder Matt Lamb also chipped in with two assists.

NK got on the board in the 22nd minute on a corner kick from sophomore forward Evan Gaudreau. Gaudreau chipped a high arching ball to the back post where Hess was waiting, unmarked, for an easy header to take a 1-0 lead.

"We needed to get off on the right foot and take the weight off our shoulders," said Hess.

Coming off back-to-back losses, the Knights entered the game with a handful of disciplinary suspensions and three scratches due to injury, leaving Central coach John Santos shorthanded and frustrated. 

"The frustration is basically with the discipline. We can't keep getting bad yellow cards either," said Santos.

The Skippers were anything but shorthanded, as head coach Kyle Froberg used a deep bench to keep fresh legs on the field. Eight different Skipper substitutions in the first half alone allowed Froberg to keep his team rested. 

"The guys have been training hard every day for that moment, to get in and play," said the NK coach.

After numerous chances, NK finally broke through in the 50th minute, as Ferguson flew past the defense to start an odd man rush.  The forward let go a hard, low shot on Central goalkeeper Alvaro Vazquez who made the initial save. But, the rebound went right to the feet of junior Adam Corey who found the back of the net to give the Skippers the eventual game winning goal.

"We were getting close, it is just a matter of capitalizing on the opportunities that we get," said Hess. "We were right on the doorstep the whole game." 

NK would not have to wait as long for their third tally, as Hess struck again on a breakaway. Lamb played the lone Central defender perfectly, chipping a pass to Hess in the box for an easy finish. 

Not all was lost for Santos and the Knights, as some young players played well in the absense of their scratched teammates. Freshman goalie Vazquez stopped six shots before exiting in the 54th minute. 

"(Vazquez) did a nice job. None of the goals were really his fault. He's been great...he kept us in the game for awhile until they finally opened it up," said Santos.

The dagger came just seconds after the Hess goal in the 53rd minute, as Ferguson and Lamb got through a tired Knight defense. Ferguson unleashed a shot on Vazquez who made a diving save, but Lamb was there for the rebound and easily put the ball in the back of the open net.

Central got on the scoreboard 15 minutes later as Victor Bulox ripped a bending shot past backup goalkeeper David Lewander to end the scoring. Lewander made four saves off the bench for the Skippers.

Senior captain Ben Jones started in net for NK, and held Central scoreless in his 54 minutes of play, stopping the only shot he saw.

The win moves the Skippers to 2-2-2 on the season, while the Knights drop to 2-3-0.

GAME NOTES:
Central committed nine fouls in the game to NK's six, while the only two yellow cards also went to the Knights...NK was rewarded six corner kicks to Central's one...The loss is the third straight for the Knights after starting 2-0...NK returns to action Friday at Lincoln High School.