Lakeshore Men’s Soccer
LMS Spring Sports Season Schedule
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LAKESHORE DROPS A CLOSE ONE IN SEASON OPENER
The Men’s Soccer Team took to the pitch for their first game of the season yesterday at home against Oakwood IB. A sluggish first half saw the Nighthawks take a 1-0 lead at the midway point. In the 24th minute, co-captain Landyn Lee received a quality through ball from right-wing Tysen Deschenes, sped around the Oakwood defense and buried a shot in the top corner to tie the score going into halftime. In the second half, the Lakers made some adjustments and controlled the play. Lakeshore had numerous chances in the second half, including a penalty shot, but were turned away by a stellar Oakwood keeper. The Nighthawks were able to capitalize some of the rare chances they got in the half and escaped with a 3-1 victory.Â
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Blake Upchurch was solid in his debut as Lakeshore’s goalkeeper making 5 saves. Alex Short, Micah Bhatt, and Alejandro Garcia controlled the center of the field and created offense all game long. The defense was led by co-captain Nathaniel Ingram, Paxton Lawver, Eli VanWomer, Michael Nervegna, and Thomas Nervegna. The team is back at practice today in order to prepare for an away game against rival Woodland Heights on Monday.
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LAKESHORE COMES CLOSE BUT CAN’T KEEP THE BRAVES FROM A COME FROM BEHIND VICTORY
The Laker Men took on the Braves from Woodland Heights yesterday at the Lowe’s YMCA. The Braves came out on fire and put the Lakers in an early 1-0 hole. The boys dug deep and controlled the play for much of the 1st half, just missing on multiple offensive chances before Alejandro Garcia burst up the left wing, beat his defender, and buried a sublime left-footed shot into the upper-third of the net. Thomas Nervegna got the play started moving the ball quickly from defense to offense in order to spring Garcia.Â
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The boys came out firing on all cylinders in the second half and continued to move the ball effectively. Just 6 minutes into the second half, Max Molestina found an open Landyn Lee who deposited the ball in the net for his second goal of the young season to give Lakeshore a 2-1 lead. A talented Woodland Heights team battled back and would not be denied as they netted two late goals to pull off a dramatic 3-2 come-from-behind win.Â
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Goalie Blake Upchurch made 4 saves, two of the spectacular fashion, to keep the game close. Nathaniel Ingram, Oliver Nelson, and Paxton Lawver held a strong Braves’ offense in check for most of the game. Alex Short and Micah Bhatt worked the middle of the field and created numerous opportunities for the Lakers. Overall, the effort by the team was top-notch and provides the team with a great stepping-stone as the preseason portion of the schedule progresses. The team is back at practice today to get ready for next Wednesday’s game against Brawley IB and the Lowe’s YMCA.
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LAKESHORE WINS BIG
The Lakeshore Men’s soccer team took on a scrappy West Iredell team at home yesterday and came away with a convincing 5-2 victory. The Lakers dominated possession throughout the game but were unlucky to fall behind 1-0 in the 14th minute. Undaunted by the setback, the Lakers continued to press and were able to even the score when an Alex Short pass hit Alejandro Garcia in stride and Garcia was able to get behind the defense and slot the ball home for the equalizer in the 20th minute. Just 4 minutes later, the Lakers took the lead on a perfectly placed free-kick by 7th-grader Micah Bhatt to take a 2-1 lead into halftime.
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After a quick strike by West Iredell to start the second half to nod the score at 2-2, the domination of possession continued when Micah Bhatt netted his second of the game by lofting a shot over the helpless Mustang’s keeper in the 36th minute off a nice pass from 8th-grader Landyn Lee. The Lakers struck again quickly when Alejandro Garcia popped in his second of the game intercepting an errand clear by the Mustang’s keeper. 8th-grader Max Molestina rounded out the scoring in the final minutes for the 5-2 final score.Â
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Paxton Lawver played an outstanding game on the back end, frustrating the top Mustang players by not allowing them any attacking rhythm. Goalkeeper Blake Upchurch made 4 four saves, including one on a clear breakaway when the game was still in doubt, and was able to start the Laker attack with pin-point throws out to his wingers. Andrew Helton, Thomas Nervegna, and Micheal Nervegna held strong on the backline and denied the Mustangs time after time, never allowing them to establish consistent possession in the Lakers’ defensive end.Â
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The boys are back at it this afternoon to prepare for their first regular season game at home on Monday against East Iredell.
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LAKESHORE MIDDLE COMES FROM BEHIND TO DEFEAT THE KNIGHTS FROM EIMS
The Laker Men opened the Regular Season against the Knights from East Iredell. A slow start saw the short-handed Lakers, who were missing 5 players due to illness, fall behind 3-0 after just 15 minutes of play. While it would have been easy for the Lakers to pack it in, the team continued to work and remained true to the game plan. After a few close calls, the Lakers were able to get on the board in the 21st minute when Alejandro Garcia sent a pass to Landyn Lee who burst behind the East defense and buried his shot in the net to make it 3-1. Just three minutes later, the duo teamed up again for almost a carbon-copy of the first goal to cut the deficit to 3-2 at halftime.Â
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The Lakers made a formation adjustment at halftime in order to increase the pressure on the Knights in the second and controlled the play immediately. The Lakers were able to knot the score at 3 when Alejandro Garcia converted a penalty kick in the 28th minute after Landyn Lee was pulled down in the box. Goalkeeper Blake Upchurch once again kept the Lakers in the game as he turned away 5 dangerous shots in the second half, including a clear breakaway opportunity. With 5 minutes to play, Landyn Lee was again hauled down in the penalty area and the Lakers were awarded a PK, but the Knights’ keeper was able to keep the attempt out of his net.Â
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With the prospect of overtime looming, late-game substitute Eli VanWormer was able to send Tysen Deschenes through the East defense with a beautiful pass. On. a breakaway, Deschenes was able to coolly deposit the ball in the net for the game-winner with less than two minutes remaining, sending the Laker fans into a frenzy.Â
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Even short-handed and down 3-0, the Lakers never hung their heads; they simply got to work and battled back. Solid defensive efforts were turned in by Michael Nervegna, Nathaniel Ingram, Andrew Helton, and Paxton Lawver. Brady Dickson, Alex Short, and Max Molestina were able to press the attack all game to help get the win. The coaches could not be more proud of this group of cardiac-Lakers. The boys will take their exciting brand of soccer to the Statesville Soccer Complex on Wednesday against Oakwood IB.
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LAKESHORE PLAYS TOUGH BUT COMES UP SHORT
The Lakers traveled to the Statesville Soccer Complex to take on the Nighthawks of Oakwood IB in a hard-fought game which saw the Lakers fall short with a final score of 2-0. The final score is not always an accurate indication of the game as the Lakers were the better team for large stretches of the play. In the first half, the Lakers controlled play and possessed the ball a majority of the time, but were unable to cash in on the scoreboard, resulting in a scoreless first half of the game.
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The Nighthawks came out with more resolve and were able to pin the Lakers in their own end to start the second half. While the Lakers were not able to dent the scoreboard, the team was able to remain dangerous in the Oakwood end and pressure a talented Nighthawk back line until the final whistle.
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Another strong performance was turned in by goalkeeper Blake Upchurch with 5 saves. Landyn Lee was all over the attacking end and was unlucky not to be awarded a penalty kick in the first half after a collision with the Oakwood keeper. Alejandro Garcia, Micah Bhatt, Alex Short, Tysen Deschenes, and Max Molestina applied pressure all game. The Lakers were led defensively by Oliver Nelson, Nathaniel Ingram, Paxton Lawver, and Andrew Helton. Michael Nervegna, Thomas Nervegna, and Ashton Crawford also chipped in with valuable minutes for the defense.Â
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The Lakers are back at it next week with three games, starting on Monday at home against Third Creek.
 LAKESHORE WINS EXCITING MATCH AGAINST TCMS
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The Laker Men took the pitch against a feisty Third Creek team yesterday at home and came away with a dramatic 2-1 (5-4 in PK) victory. The Lakers controlled possession throughout the first half, but they were not able to pierce the Third Creek defense. The half ended with the score 0-0. Undaunted, the Lakers continued to press and finally broke through when Tysen Deschenes sent Landyn Lee a beautiful pass behind the defense and Lee was able to put the Lakers on top 1-0 in the 37th minute. A defensive miscue allowed the Bulldogs to capitalize on their only threatening chance to that point of the game to tie the score at 1-1 with less than 5 minutes remaining. Even though Third Creek gained some momentum, they were unable to score and the game went to a 5-minute Sudden Death period.Â
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In the OT, the Lakers recomposed themselves and re-established their domination of possession but were unlucky to not end the game. After the 5-minute OT, the teams went to a Penalty Shootout. Neither team was able to get an advantage until the 6th round when goalkeeper Blake Upchurch was able to get in front of a shot for a huge save to give the Lakers a chance to win it. Paxton Lawver stepped up to the spot and buried his shot with pin-point accuracy to secure the win for Lakeshore.Â
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Scoring in the PKs was Landyn Lee, Micha Bhatt, Alejandro Garcia, Tysen Deschense, and Paxton Lawver. Goalkeeper Blake Upchurch made 5 saves in the game and the stout Laker defense was led by Nathiel Ingram, Oliver Nelson, and Andrew Helton. Alex Short controlled the middle of the field and kept the talented Bulldogs from mounting any serious offensive rhythm. Â
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The Lakers are back in action at the Lowe’s YMCA today against Brawley IB in a make-up pre-season game.
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LAKESHORE STARTS OUT STRONG BUT COULD NOT HOLD ON AS BIB WINS
The Laker Men’s team met Brawley IB at the Lowe’s YMCA for a make-up preseason game yesterday. The Lakers came out on fire and got on the board just 2 minutes into the game when Oliver Nelson sent a ball behind the defense that Landyn Lee was able to corral and deposit into the net. The Lakers held strong and took a 1-0 lead into halftime.Â
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In the second half, the Lakers took advantage of the situation and got valuable playing time for each member of the team. Leading the way were goalkeepers Blake Upchurch with 7 saves and Dominic Garbarino with 3 saves, Adrain Martinez, Ashton Crawford, Brady Dickson, and Liam Hoffman held their own against a relentless Phoenix attack in the second half. The final score of 5-1 in Brawley’s favor was not indicative of the effort the players put into the game.
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The Lakers resume their regular season schedule on Thursday at West Iredell.
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DAVID DiLeo
ddleo27@gmail.com
Head Men’s Soccer Coach
Phone: 704-799-0187
TERRENCE Clark
terrence_clark@iss.k12.nc.us
Assistant Men’s Soccer Coach
Phone: 704-799-0187
