by Ryan Mosher
After starting their season off with an easy 4-0 win over Heatly, the Berlin boys soccer team traveled to New Lebanon on Friday night to take on the Tigers in their season opener. The game between bitter rivals did not disappoint anyone as the players from both teams played hard and with lots of emotion. The Tigers, the defending Central Hudson Valley League Champions, hosted the Mountaineers under the lights in the first of two match-ups within a week of each other.
The Tigers struck first midway through the first half when Aaron Stall found the back of the net to give them a 1-0 lead. For
the next forty minutes the teams played back and forth soccer. The Mountaineers led the offensive charge, only to be held back by New Lebanon’s tough as nails defense. With 26:18 left in the game, Tucker Connally crossed the ball towards Tyler Pomakoy in the center of the field. Pomakoy headed the ball past New Lebanon’s goalie Travis Carr to tie the game.
The end to end action continued for fifteen more minutes until Drew Webster took a direct kick that glanced off a defender and into the net with 11:11 remaining. Berlin’s defense stepped up in the final minute of the game to hold off the Tigers’ charge, preserving the 2-1 victory. Berlin goalie Shawn Willis had 21 saves, while Carr had 13 for New Lebanon.