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Squandering Early Scoring Chances, Hun Boys' Soccer Falls in MCT Final
By Bill Alden
It was one-way traffic in the early stages of the Mercer County Tournament championship game as the Hun School boys' soccer team dominated play in its clash with Steinert.
Second-seeded Hun controlled possession, putting nearly constant pressure on the fifth-seeded Spartans in the contest last Saturday night at Mercer County Community College.
In the first 55 minutes of the clash, the Raiders outshot Steinert 13-1 but were unable to break through with a score.
With the teams knotted at 0-0 midway through the second half, the gritty Spartans sensed that they had weathered the storm and they started getting forward on a frustrated Hun.
The Raiders held the fort, needing a couple of goal line clearances by defenders to force overtime. In the second extra ten-minute session, Hun squandered a couple of more opportunities and then paid dearly as Steinert scored with 47.5 seconds left to win the title.
The loss left a disappointed Hun squad sitting on the turf with their heads down, contemplating their missed opportunities.
While a subdued Hun head coach Chris Kingston acknowledged his frustration at the result, he was far from upset at the effort shown by his players.
"I thought the first half was completely going our way," said Kingston, whose club fell to 15-3 with the setback. "We just couldn't put one away early and then fatigue caught up with us. I'm not as mad as I thought I'd be after losing this game. I thought our kids played so hard. If we convert one of those early chances, we are fine."
The third-year head coach, in fact, made a tactical move at the half to try to get his players to achieve a breakthrough.
"I switched our formation at half," explained Kingston. "I just felt I needed to get some of our more dangerous players forward. I moved Scott Loesser and Adam Kotchin forward. The result of that is that we didn't seem to control the ball as well in the second half."
Steinert's defense, though, had a lot to do with Hun's inability to cash in. "They defend so well," declared Kingston, whose club lost tight games to Steinert in last year's MCT and earlier this season.
"Their anticipation, desire, and determination to not get scored on as you approach the goal are hard to beat. We had a few chances but we just couldn't seem to close the deal on them. They defend so well. They have a mental toughness that no one else we play has."
Hun will need to show some mental toughness as it plays in the state Prep A tournament this week. The Raiders host local rival Lawrenceville on November 3 with the winner likely to face nationally ranked St. Benedict's in the final, which is slated for November 7.
"I think my guys are pretty tough," said Kingston, whose club pushed St. Benedict's in the 2003 state Prep A final before succumbing 6-3.
"I guess the lesson you learn from this is that sometimes you play as hard as you can and do everything you can to win and things don't fall your way. How you deal with that makes up who you are."
