Clover boys’ soccer continues good run of form with win over Indian Land

Clover boys’ soccer kept its third clean sheet in four games Saturday afternoon, beating Indian Land 1-0 in the Manchester Cup.

Blue Eagles coach Graham Stafford had reason to be concerned with his team’s mental and physical fitness fresh off a crucial 1-0 win over Nation Ford Friday night, and on the cusp of spring break. Indian Land, the second best team in 2A soccer the past three seasons, stood in the way of several days of recuperation.

“I was going back and forward to whether those guys had enough in them for today’s game, but they assured me they did,” Stafford said. Of course they’re gonna say that, but I went with them and I trusted them. I was surprised at the levels of energy. Phenomenal physical and mental exertion for us to be able to pull off the win against a very good Indian Land team.”

No. 9-ranked Clover (8-3) defended resolutely, took one of its few offensive chances and showed good energy levels en route to the win. The Blue Eagles, leading Region 3-4A after the Nation Ford win, have six shutouts in 11 matches this season, and cohesion in the back is one of the main reasons why.

“Throughout the back line we’ve got a brotherhood going on,” said senior keeper Robert Schreiner, a Francis Marion signee. “Everybody on the team’s got everybody else’s back. We can all count on each other.”

The loss was harsh on Indian Land (5-6-1), which more than held its own. That’s nothing new for Adam Cole’s program, though; its first seven games this season were against 4A teams.

“I was pretty pleased,” Cole said. “They caught us on the counter, but in all, happy with the performance. Our kids have the caliber to hang with those types of teams, and it definitely helps to build us and lead us into the playoffs.”

Clover midfielder Fernando Alpizar-Ramos has made some news lately with a couple of long distance goals, and he tried his luck from outside of the penalty area several times before halftime on Saturday at Manchester Meadows – the last of those touched over smartly for a corner kick by Indian Land goalie Charles Turner.

It was a bit of a warning because Alpizar-Ramos nearly opened the scoring early in the second half, cutting in from the left and ripping a shot that bounced onto the right post and away from danger.

Seven minutes later, Indian Land should have been in front. Senior striker Jordan Szustwal did well to keep the ball in on the goal line and when he squared the ball for teammate Justin Penn, the pass had a little too much sizzle and skipped off Penn’s foot from about 5 yards out.

“We missed a couple of sitters, but we were definitely in the mix,” Cole said.

Clover poured on the pressure as the second half wore on in sunny but chilly conditions. Bailey Bottini’s run into the box with about 16 minutes left made the difference. He lost the ball to a well-timed tackle near the penalty spot, but it fell to Manny Vargas, who drove a shot low across the keeper and into the left corner for the only goal of the match. From there, the Blue Eagles held out for their sixth win in seven games.

Winthrop beats Davidson in early game

Winthrop men’s soccer was pleased with its 2-0 win over Davidson Saturday morning. The Eagles scored from two set pieces and looked fairly sharp in their win over the Wildcats.

With coach Rich Posipanko looking on, assistant coach Daniel Ridenhour took the Eagle reins and had to be pleased when his team opened the scoring with 15 minutes left in the first half. Max Hasenstab delivered an in-swinging corner kick to the near post, which was flicked on by Kendo Ito. The ball was again touched on and Icelandic midfielder Magnus Thorsson was on hand to slip the ball home for a 1-0 lead.

Davidson was unfortunate to not be tied 1-1 at half. Valery Sviderskiy profited from a defensive mix-up in the Winthrop backline, but after touching past the keeper, Sviderskiy missed an open net, planting his shot into the near post side netting with just 27 seconds left in the first half.

Winthrop, which started Rock Hill’s Andrew Raad in the center of defense, switched formations and made several substitutions at halftime, including Fort Mill’s Jonathan Cutrone. But despite the changes, the Eagles made the Wildcats pay for missing their clear chance before half. With about seven minutes left, Winthrop centerback Jordi Lluch attacked another in-swinging corner kick and beat the Davidson keeper to the ball, glancing it into the back of the net to seal the win.

This story was originally published March 28, 2015 at 3:48 PM with the headline "Clover boys’ soccer continues good run of form with win over Indian Land."