BALL CONTROL: Princeton Day School boys’ soccer player Nas Amer controls the ball in recent action. Last week, senior midfielder Amer scored two goals to help PDS defeat the George School (Pa.) 4-0. The Panthers, who moved to 2-2 with a 3-0 loss to Hillsborough last Thursday, host Germantown Academy (Pa.) on September 19 before playing at the Blair Academy ion September 21 and at Peddie on September 24. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

With prolific scorer Wesley Leggett having graduated and now playing at the University of Connecticut, the Princeton Day School boys’ soccer team will have to spread the wealth offensively this fall.

“We lost a big player in our striker Wesley so we have to make up for it somewhere, said PDS senior midfielder Nas Amer. “I think this year we are more rounded as a team, more balanced.”

Last week as PDS hosted George School (Pa.), Amer helped make up for the loss of Leggett, scoring two first half goals to help the Panthers jump out to a 3-0 halftime.

“Our intensity from the start really put them under,” said Amer. “The first couple of goals set the tone for the game.”

Amer displayed his intensity and finishing touch with his goals in the September 10 contest.

“It was take a touch, I saw there was space and just hit it,” said Amer, reflecting on his first tally which gave PDS a 2-0 lead. “On the other one, I trusted that the ball would be put in; I just made the run and it worked out.”

While PDS ended up winning 4-0, Amer acknowledged that there was a lack of intensity in the second half.

“That shows a bit of complacency I think,” said Amer. “We played a great first half. We need to keep that up because against a tougher opponent; say we play Pennington, that is two or three goals we are conceding, playing like that.”

After being plagued by leg injuries last fall, Amer is excited to be getting extensive playing time in his final campaign.

“I was out for the majority of last year, it was my quad and groin,” said Amer. “I feel 100 percent now.”

Returning to full speed, Amer has been able to sharpen his skills by competing in club ball.

“I play for a club team that is pretty high ranked like top 10 in the country, PSA (Princeton Soccer Association), I contribute a lot to that,” said Amer.

“We are playing tough opponents, the best in the country week in, week out and that helps a lot. I bring that here and I try to help my teammates.”

PDS head coach Ollie Hilliker likes what Amer is bringing to the table this fall.

“Nas has been great; he is looking sharp,” said Hilliker. “He is a senior captain this year. I think that is something he is proud of. He is working really hard everyday. I am pleased with how he is doing. He is definitely a good influence on the team right now.”

Hilliker was pleased with how the Panthers set the tone against George.“We started great, it is the first home game both preseason scrimmages and the first two games were all away,” said Hilliker.

“We are a team that can play, we can move the ball. I was looking forward to playing here today. We started very well, we had good intensity and took the game by the scruff of the neck. We got at them and it showed, we did very well to come in up 3-0 at half time.”

Things didn’t go as well in the second half as the Panthers took their foot off the gas.

“We changed formation because we wanted to experiment today, look at some different ideas and try that out a little bit,” said Hilliker.

“That was no reasonable excuse for how we played, we definitely weren’t nearly as good. The players lost a little bit of focus and lost a little bit of the mindset we have been talking about. It is super early in the season. I am OK with that right now as long as they understand that and we change going forward.”

In the wake of Leggett’s exit, PDS is focused on developing a balanced attack.

“We have been talking about how we need to get goals from all over the field,” said Hilliker.

“We have good players all around and they all need to contribute to the team’s success, whether it is playing the ball wide, whether it is getting a cross in, whether it is getting an assist, or whether it is getting a goal.”

With PDS facing some very good teams in the next few weeks, the squad will need contributions all over the field to hold its own.

“We have got a barrage of real big teams coming up but you have to play the best to compete at that level,” said Hilliker, whose team moved to 2-2 with a 3-0 loss to Hillsborough last Thursday and hosts Germantown Academy (Pa.) on September 19 before playing at the Blair Academy on September 21 and at Peddie on September 24.

“The focus for me is continuing to develop the way we play, move the ball, and create chances on goal. If we can convert more than we are doing then we will do well. We move the ball nicely but we have to convert in the final third.”

In Amer’s view, the Panthers can do very well if they can produce the level of soccer they displayed in the early stages of the George game.

“This is a good start, we need to build off of this,” said Amer. “We need to just keep playing the same way we played in the first half today every single game.”