Bonny Eagle’s Ryan Moody blasted two goals – including one to tie the action late in the second half – against Sanford on Saturday morning, Sept. 26, but the Spartans’ Mitch Duncan earned two as well, and his second sealed a 3-2 OT win for the visitors.
“I wasn’t surprised that it was that tight,” said Bonny Eagle head coach Larry Robertson. “[Sanford has] played a lot of strong teams tightly so far this season. Tim [Fecteau, Spartans head coach] has done a great job with those kids.”
Moody kicked off the scoring at 28:55 of the first half, putting the Scots up 1-0. Robertson describes the goal:
“We moved it pretty well, and David Byrne, who’s a freshman, had a great pass into [Ryan], and Ryan slotted it home.”
Duncan answered 22 minutes later, leveling the field until teammate Josiah Dube put the Spartans on top 2-1 on a penalty kick three minutes into the second half.
Moody, however, evened things out on another penalty kick – earned by Max Harris – at 6:01. Moody, a standout for the Scots, regularly takes their PKs, seeming to thrive in that circumstance.
“He takes them because he’s probably the most composed in that situation,” said Robertson. “It’s so funny now, looking back on it: When he was a freshman, in a summer game, he had missed one. His freshman year, we had another kid take them, but now he…steps up. I think embraces it, and loves to be in that position.”
Moody is adept at faking keepers out.
“He does a very, very good job of making the goalie think he’s going one way,” said Robertson. “We played at Deering and had two PKs in that game, and he took both of them and went a different way each time.”
Tied at two apiece, the game devolved into OT, where Duncan got the last word – shouted it out – and ended the match, sudden death.
“It might’ve just been a communication error in the back, and they didn’t pick up [Duncan] on the side there,” Robertson said of the slip in his boys’ defense. “It also could be attributed to tired legs – they were out there for quite a long time, fighting in the second half to get back into it.”
Bonny Eagle dropped to 1-4-1 on the season. The Scots are ranked 14th in A South at the moment, two slots outside the playoffs bracketing. The team hosted TA (second place, 6-0-2) on Tuesday the 29th, after Current Publishing’s print deadlines, and will travel to Cheverus (sixth, 4-1-2) on Thursday, Oct. 1.
Sanford improves to 2-5. The Spartans traveled to Noble (17th, 0-7) on Tuesday, and welcome Marshwood (ninth, 3-3-1) on Thursday.
Spartans Earl Fall (4) and Patrick Morris (10) chase down the Scots’ Regan McCleary and the ball.
Spartan Mason Scully and Scot Ryan Moody vie for a header; Moody gets the touch. Moody hashed both of Bonny Eagle’s goals in their matchup with Sanford on Saturday.
Bonny Eagle’s Caleb Pendleton jets forward on the attack, pursued by Sanford’s Mitch Duncan.
Bonny Eagle’s Max Harris heads a ball away, getting up and over Sanford’s Mitch Duncan.
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