Andover held an undefeated Taft team scoreless in the first half.
Against Bridgton, the team was able to maintain possession of the ball but was unable to make many major plays, according to Alan Fang ’21.
“We did well at keeping the ball, but we didn’t really do anything with it, [so] it was kind of pointless. We were mostly just chipping the ball around our own half and not advancing very much,” said Fang.
According to Mason Tuller ’22, the team worked on implementing different game scenarios in practice which helped it prepare for both games.
“We practiced what we do when a certain ball comes in a certain situation to a specific player. So we worked on that for the majority of practice and implemented it into a small-sided scrimmage thereafter, and that’s how we prepared,” said Tuller.
Earlier in the week, the team traveled to Taft on Saturday where it lost 0-2, moving Andover’s record to 2-4.
Against Taft, the team played a strong defensive game despite a few missteps, according to Co-Captain Connor Ding ’20 and Tuller.
Ding said, “We played really well defensively throughout the entire game. We had a strong shape and it was just two small mistakes that led to their two goals. We were pretty organized defensively and that helped us stay in the game,” said Ding.
Tuller added, “We defended really well. We stayed really compact on the back floor, that’s been a real problem for us was staying compact especially for the wing backs… We did a really good job of that and not letting them get around us.”
The team hopes to improve its execution and creating more opportunities netfront, according to Fang.
“I think we should work on the final part of making a pass that gives us a chance and creating more chances in front of the goal. We need to be able to capitalize on chances in front,” said Fang.
Andover will play Choate on Saturday.
