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The Congdon Report! District 30 Goes to Belen Jesuit!

Written by Lee Roggenburg on . Posted in .
  Thanks to Tom Congdon for the pictures and his recaps!  I’m highlighting this as a way for others next season to be able to increase the coverage of their local high schools!  Tom kept this simple, provided some really nice pictures and gives us a nice amount of info that we can easily craft a story from.  Note also that Tom did not see the full games in a couple of instances, so you don’t need to fully attend to still submit a game recap.  Great job Tom and we at FLN hope that other game attendees can feel like they can contribute too!
  Semifinals – Game 1 – Columbus Explorers vs. Ransom Everglades Raiders  Arrived under 10 minutes in the 3rd quarter for this District 30 matchup. The score favored Columbus by 4 (6-3).  It appeared as if Columbus was in control of the game.   Both teams exchanged goals (7-4).  At 10:05 in the 4th quarter, Max Fuster (#6) tallies to bring the Raiders closer. No panic in the Columbus camp, but a couple of minutes later, Fuster scores again at 8:31.  Score is now 7-6.  Chris Kucera (#11) scores to tie the game at 7 apiece.  
  Momentum is all on the Raiders side.  At 6:31, Kucera scores again and the Raiders take the lead.  At 5:40 in the game, Raiders goalie Andrew Swerdlow (#13) makes the play of the game, stopping a bullet by Alberto Diaz (#27).  It is the turning point in the game, rallying the Raiders long poles to play stellar defense.  Columbus throws all it can at the Raiders, but Fuster scores again to increase the lead by 2 goals.  Raiders edge out Columbus in 9-7 in a come from behind win. Max Fuster #6 scored 3 goals in the 2nd half; Chris Kucera #11 scored 2.   Semifinals – Game 2 – Belen Jesuit Wolverines vs. Miami Country Day Spartans The second District 30 semifinal game featured the Belen Wolverines and Ransom Everglades Raiders. Belen wins the face-off and quickly marches down the field. With less than a minute into the game Ignacio Lopez-Castro (#1) scores.  At 10:12, Belen scores again, this time Roberto Fernandez (#4) contributing to the effort.  At 7:08, Rogelio Consquegra (#24) adds another.  At 5:52, Deiter Prussing (#19) scores.  At this point you could see it was going to be Belen’s night.  Everglades had no answer defensively.  When they managed a turnover they relied heavily on long pole Jovan Joseph (#3) to clear the ball.  
  Jovan has tremendous speed, but solo runs into Belen territory quickly resulted in a turnover, as Belen midfielders (and long poles) successfully stick-checked the ball out.  When Joseph wasn’t clearing the ball, the Spartan’s goalie long passes resulted in turnovers.  The first half featured an overwhelming possession by Belen. By the end of the first half, Belen tallied 12 goals, the last being scored by Joshua Lara (#34)(long pole) with 6 seconds remaining in the half.   Overall, a well-balanced attack by Belen.  Roberto Fernandez (#4) scored 4 goals in the first half.  Nicolas Smith (#2), Maurice Milton (#31), and Diego Horta (#11) also added goals. Belen wins this one 18-2.   District Final – Belen vs. Ransom Everglades On a breezy, mild Miami night, I arrived at Columbus High School curious to see how the Ransom Everglades Raiders would fare against the Belen Wolverines in the District 30 Championship. The Belen fanbase was out in full force. Parents and siblings all decked out in blue and gold.  The student body lived up to their rowdy reputation. The first quarter started off with each team measuring itself.  At 8:21, Maurice Milton (#31) scores the first goal of the game for Belen.  Dexter Prussing (#19) follows up 19 seconds later.  Belen is up 2-0.  Turnovers by Ransom Everglades kills any threat they tried to mount.  At 5:43, Nicolas Smith (#2) scores.  Belen up 3-0.   A minute later, Ignacio Lopez-Castro (#1) scores.  Belen up 4-0.  Milton (#31) scores again for Belen and the first quarter ends with Belen up 5 goals to none for the Raiders.  The 2nd quarter starts much like the first.  Nicolas Smith (#2) scores his second goal of the game and scores again at 6:55 for a hat-trick.  As the end of the first half comes to a close, Raiders goalie Andrew Swerdlow (#13) makes a great stop on Roberto Fernandez (#4).  At this point, the Raiders appear to wake up from their slumber and start to play.  Alex Kucera (#25) puts to good shots on goal, but comes up empty. At 1:29 left in the half, his brother, Chris Kucera (#11) puts one in for the Raiders to make the score 7-1 in favor of Belen.  
  Critical to the Raiders slow start were too many turnovers in the first half.  Possession favored Belen. Clearing the ball was another issue for the Raiders, as they hardly got it past the Wolverines’ 40 yard line. As for Belen, the stick work of Nicholas Perez Blanco (#17) and Joshua Lara (#34) stifled Raiders midfielders all game. Both played aggressive defense. For his size, Lara has a big presence on the field. He’s nimble, eats up ground balls and is constantly bringing the ball upfield into the offensive zone.  Really impressed with his passing and stick work.  I was also impressed with Blanco’s size and passing during clears. Both seem to exude a high IQ on the field.  The next team they play needs to focus on these two players and figure out a way to neutralize them. I’m not sure what their coach said at half-time but it’s definitely a different team to start the 3rd quarter.  Defense tightens up but Maurice Milton (#31) makes a nice pass to Dexter Prussing (#19) for his second goal of the game. At 7:04, the Raiders score.  The Raiders offense is finally playing with grit and determination. With a little under two minutes in the quarter, Chris Kucera (#11) passes to Yago Ulloa (#9) for a score.  Raiders are now down 8-3.  Is a comeback in the making? The intensity picks up to start the 4th quarter, but any hope of comeback is quickly answered by Lopez-Castro (#1)(assist by Prussing #19).  Belen up 9-3.  Raiders are now pressing and trying to create turnovers.  Possession is back and forth.  At 6:39, Rogelio Consuguegra (#24) scores for Belen, making it 10-3.  A minute later, Ricardo Mayo (#3) scores for Belen.  Chris Kucera (#11) adds another goal for the Raiders at the 2:25 mark. Belen still up by a wide margin.  At the end of the game, Diego Horta (#11) makes a great pass from behind the goal to Dexter Prussing (#19) for his third goal of the game. The game ends 12-4 in favor of the Belen Wolverines, District 30 Champions.
  Thank you Tom for the great article and pictures!