The TABC varsity soccer team started the 2016 season right where they left off during the undefeated 2015 championship season, playing high-octane offense, stingy defense, and superb goaltending by co-captain Jared Benjamin.
The STORM opened the season on the road at Hillel, and it took them half of the first quarter to get on track. Hillel actually opened the score. But then the STORM began rolling. First, co-captain Calev Minsky scored 7 consecutive goals (a new STORM varsity record), including 3 goals on one shift. Then, his linemate, assistant captain Joe Moskowitz got in the act and scored the next 3 goals. Josh Lehman and Avi Berkowitz completed the scoring, with a final score of 12:1.
The second game was also on the road, against always-tough Kushner Cougars. Kushner’s junior varsity won the championship last year, and many players from that team have moved up to the varsity team. In the first quarter, TABC had a slight advantage in time of possession and had several good chances, but Kushner’s goalie made excellent saves and the game remained scoreless. In the second quarter, TABC finally broke through, and Joe Moskowitz scored two goals, first on the great individual effort, and the second from an excellent pass from Minsky. But the Cobras turned on the pressure, and despite Jared Benjamin making several hard saves, Kushner tied the score before half time. The teams went to the locker rooms with the score 2:2.
In the middle of the third quarter, TABC got caught on a very long shift. The Cobras took advantage of the TABC players tiring, and went ahead 3:2. The STORM immediately tied the score on Avi Berkowitz powerful shot from mid-court. A few minutes later, Calev Minsky put TABC ahead for good. In the fourth quarter, TABC dominated the ball possession, and did not let Kushner create any quality scoring opportunities. With 3 minutes to go, Joe Moskowitz scored his third goal of the game with another excellent pass from Minsky, to complete the scoring. TABC had their second win of the season, 5:3.
The third game was against the JEC Thunder. In the first half, TABC played quality offense and scored 7 goals, but sloppy defense, and only a number of brilliant saves by Benjamin kept JEC from scoring. After making halftime adjustments, TABC tighten up on defense, and did not allow JEC any more quality chances, while continuing to dominate on offense; almost everyone on the team scored. The highlight of the game was Meir Olshin scoring his first goal for varsity, as TABC fans exploded in celebration. The final score was 17:0. The team celebrated the victory with Slurpees in the local 7-11 and will now get ready for the rest of the season.
By Sam Shteingart
