Maconaquah Schools

The MHS Boys’ Soccer Team began their pursuit of repeating as sectional champions by taking on the Rochester Zebras in the first round of Sectional 22 on Wednesday night. The Braves started slower than normal as the Zebras dropped 8 players deep into the defensive side of the field hoping to delay the inevitable. The Braves’ scoring finally got started just over 20 minutes into the match as Colton Beebe blazed a bender in over the head of the goalkeeper from outside of the box. A short time later, Cohen Beebe played a ball up to Joe Manueles who was able to bypass the keeper before tapping it in for the 2-0 lead. The last goal of the half came after a hot shot from Joe bounced off the keeper’s hands to the awaiting foot of Colton, who flicked it up and over the keeper, notching his second goal of the half. The seniors kept the momentum going into the second half as Joe crashed the box, meeting Colton’s corner kick for Joe’s second goal. Joe completed the hat trick, sending a free kick into the back of the net for the last goal of the match, making it 5-0. Brody Kubly and the defensive line thwarted the few Zebra attacks throughout the match. Coach Wilhelm was pleased with the effort, saying, “I’ve never seen an opponent use that strategy before. It worked until it didn’t I guess. Happy for the win and moving on to the second round.” Coach Sparks added, “The boys played hard and worked together really well today. Leaders stepped up and we played unselfish soccer throughout the game.” “MVPs of the Match” – Joe Manueles and Colton Beebe. The pair of seniors sparked the Braves’ attack, combining for all 5 goals of the match. The Braves return to sectional action tomorrow night (Thursday, Oct 8) at 7 pm at Northwestern (Host School). The Braves will face the Eastern Comets in the second round, after the Comets defeated the Tippy Valley Vikings with a final score of 3-0.