Somers and Greeley battle to stalemate

SOMERS, N.Y. - On Wednesday, Oct. 8, Somers hosted Horace Greeley, and the visiting Quakers’ AA rating had the Tuskers doing their homework.

“We try to do our homework, and we stacked up in a defensive structure that would frustrate them,” said coach Rob Carreira — and allowing just one goal proved the plan worked. But Greeley had a defensive game plan too, and both teams held firm to finish in a 1-1 draw.

“A tie was probably a fair result,” Carreira said afterward.

The first half mirrored the scoreboard, with play staying largely between the 20s as neither defense yielded much ground.

The first real chance came off a Greeley miscue when Jake Levy’s short goal kick was intercepted by Harper Ritson, setting up a Somers corner. Randy Contreras lofted the ball in at 24:30, and when Ritson connected, Levy recovered to make a diving save.

At the other end, Greeley’s best first-half look came on a penalty kick, but Eduardo Ruiz’s header in the crease denied it.

The backline held steady until Ruiz again sparked a counterattack. His defensive stop sent Ritson through midfield, and the junior broke free to feed Trevor Keimig on a breakaway. Levy came off his line to challenge, and while Keimig went down in the box, play continued. After discussion among the officials, a penalty kick was awarded — but Contreras’ attempt sailed just over the crossbar.

With 12:50 left in the half, scoring chances stayed scarce. Into the second, Somers added physicality on the wing with James Brinn. “He’s our big guy,” said Carreira. “His presence can unsettle the opposition.”

Brinn’s hustle forced two corner kicks, and the second one paid off at 33 minutes. Contreras sent in a clean service, and Connor Sheldon headed it home. “He delivered a really nice ball,” said Sheldon.

Greeley pressed hard after the goal, keeping the Somers defense — led by Braeden Gibson and Nicholas Goncalves — busy with several key stops.

Milan Sath then generated offense for Somers, battling through defenders to earn another corner that led to a Kenji Todo shot on goal.

The Tuskers looked poised to double their lead when long passes sprung Ruiz and Ritson behind the defense, but both were flagged for offsides, drawing loud protests from the home sideline.

The Quakers capitalized on their next opportunity. A lead pass into the box resulted in a foul and a penalty kick. Henry Holmquist converted despite Somers keeper Ben Baran guessing correctly, and the game was tied with 18 minutes remaining.

Greeley nearly took the lead with 10 minutes to go when Sam Mullen, falling backward at the 20, sent a looping shot off the crossbar. Somers answered as Joseph Bojaj found Contreras inside the 15, but his shot also rattled off the bar with six minutes left.

The final chances belonged to Greeley — a Ruiz block denied Jack Santilli, and Holmquist stumbled in the box just before getting off a potential game-winner.

No call was made, drawing heated protests from the visitors. But Carreira said the officiating cut both ways. “There were a few calls we didn’t like either,” he noted. “In the end, I’m happy and proud of the boys.”