| NEWS |
  
|
| FEATURES |
| ENTERTAINMENT |
  
|
| COLUMNS |
     |
| CONTACT US |
|
| HOW TO SUBMIT |
|
|
| BACK ISSUES |
|
|
 (Photo by Bill Allen/NJ SportAction) caption:
|
Hoppenot's Defensive Skill Sparking PDS Boys' Soccer
By Bill Alden
Even though the Princeton Day School boys' soccer team breezed to a 6-1 win over Solebury last Friday, PDS senior defender Pierre Hoppenot was left with a bad taste in his mouth.
"We had trouble getting going, people just weren't ready to play," said Hoppenot, who contributed two goals and an assist in the victory. "We did what we could. We tried to play our game, keeping the ball moving on the ground."
Hoppenot knows that he and his fellow defenders have to spark PDS. "I think the back four has definitely led this team," maintained Hoppenot, who is joined along the back by classmate Ryan Palsho, junior Asante Brooks, and sophomore Derek Mayer.
"We spread the field out. The back four create the forward momentum. We've been pretty consistent all season."
PDS head coach Malcolm Murphy realizes he is lucky to have Hoppenot and his mates anchoring Panther defense.
"The back four have always played particularly well," said Murphy, who got two goals from Steve Pezzi in the win last Friday together with one apiece from Jon Zindman and Mark Milner
"If the other guys haven't got that mentality to come with their game, then the onus ends up on the backline. No matter how good the four defenders are, they can't play against six or seven players."
Murphy acknowledged that his side didn't hit the pitch with the right mentality last Friday. "It's a mental attribution," said Murphy, who admitted that PDS suffered a letdown from the inspired effort it produced in a 3-0 loss to powerful Lawrenceville on September 14.
"These guys need to understand that you come with one game only and that's a quality game. This is a team that has to see a [big] name across the other shirts to get itself up. It's an experience thing; these guys have to learn that you can't pick and choose your games."
While Murphy may have been underwhelmed by his team's effort against Solebury, he was able to put the performance in a larger perspective.
"The biggest thing is for them to get prepped for the Prep B," said Murphy, whose club cruised past Moorestown Friends 6-1 last Monday to improve to 3-1 and hosts Peddie on September 22 and Rutgers Prep on September 28.
"These games are all sessions we have to work through to get where we are mentally and physically ready to produce something better a week later."
Hoppenot, for his part, is ready to help the club produce its best soccer. "I bring an element of leadership and a knowledge of the game," explained Hoppenot, who plans to play soccer in college and is relishing the chance to play one season of high school soccer with his younger brother, PDS freshman midfielder Antoine.
"A lot of these guys don't play year-round so I just try to show people the movements of soccer. We just need to concentrate at practice, that's where it starts. We have to make sure we are ready every game and play hard no matter what team we play."
