Co-Captain Henry Meyerrose ’17 earned a penalty kick for Andover Boys Soccer after being tackled in the 18-yard box. Taking the penalty kick, Co-Captain Peter Heckendorn ’17 sent the ball soaring into the top-right corner, putting Andover ahead of Kimball Union Academy last Saturday. With the rest of the game scoreless, Andover defeated KUA 1-0. Later in the week, Andover traveled to New Hampton where Meyerrose scored the only two goals in Andover’s 2-0 shutout. These wins extended the team’s record to 10-4-2.
Playing under the lights in Phelps Stadium, Andover had to adjust to both the size of the field and the speed of the turf.
Head Coach Will Orben said, “We trained on the turf both Thursday and Friday, and the team was sharp and focused.”
“On the small field, we wanted to simplify our game and try to keep the ball as much as possible but without taking too much risk. I thought we struck this balance pretty well in the first half, and we were able to establish possession in critical areas a few times,” he continued.
Throughout the first half of the game, Andover maintained possession on the defensive end of the field. Andover created many offensive chances and constantly pressed KUA’s defense.
In an email to The Phillipian, Heckendorn wrote, “We wanted to play more direct in our attack and that definitely led to the goal.”
In the second half of the game, Andover was able to keep possession and prevent KUA from creating any dangerous offensive plays.
Orben said, “We sat a little bit deeper but really we wanted to keep playing as much as we could and keep things simple.”
Andover’s defensive unit also helped contain KUA from equalizing in the game.
“They were a very athletic team that wanted to run at us so we just had to stay organized and keep playing our game,” said Morgan Cutts ’18. “They had some decent wingers, but we played hard and contained them.”
Orben said, “They were rarely dangerous and our back five with the defensive midfielder looked really strong and in control. Also, some fine work in both halves from goalkeepers Max Levi [’19] and Ben Andresen [’17].”
Andover was able to hold off Kimball until the final whistle, earning its 1-0 shutout.
Andover then traveled to New Hampton on Wednesday with high hopes of capturing another victory. Coming off its last win, Andover came into the game with high energy and played its hardest until the end of the game.
Will Raphael ’18 said, “We were the better team and it showed with our performance.”
Andover held possession of the ball for the majority of the game, causing many offensive plays in the final third. Meyerrose netted two goals – one in each half – and Andover’s defense held strong, preventing New Hampton from scoring. The game finished with a 2-0 score.
Andover will kick off the Andover/Exeter competitions this Saturday at Smoyer Field at 10:30 a.m.
