Gomes leads Lakeland comeback with 2 goals

Updated on Wednesday, Sept. 23 at 10:44 p.m.

It’s one thing to achieve a milestone, it’s another to do it against a high-quality opponent in a come-from-behind fashion.

That’s what Lakeland (7-0) did when it rallied behind two goals from junior captain Luke Gomes, to win 2-1 against visiting Clarkstown South (3-1-2). In the process, the exhilarating win gave Lakeland coach Tim Hourahan his 250th-career victory on Tuesday night.  

“It just felt good to be 1-0 today,” Hourahan said. “I’ve been blessed to coach in this program and this community for 22 years and to win tonight with a bunch of kids I have coached for eight years since they were U8 is special. It’s a great group that just keeps finding a way to win games this year.” 

The players feel likewise about Hourahan. 

“It was a great game and having it be coach Tim’s 250th-winning game means a lot, especially since we have been with coach for all this time,” Gomes said. “Tim deserves it and this team would love to continue to achieve more for him.” 

The victory was extra special because the Vikings are a very tough team to break down, according to Hourahan  

“They have four shutouts in the year and held strong for 63 minutes before we were able to find the net,” Hourahan said. “We played with a ton of confidence the rest of the way and our captain came through with two goals.” 

Gomes, right in front of the net, got a pass from sophomore Nick Ahmataj, who was on his left, and immediately kicked it past the Clarkstown South goalie to tie the game at 1-1 with 12:53 remaining after the Vikings scored first almost five minutes earlier.

“I knew Nick would be able to get by the defender and pass me the ball,” Gomes said. “I was in the right place at the right time to finish it. It felt great but I knew the game was not over. This goal motivated us to keep going.” 

Gomes scored his second goal, off an assist from junior Ryan Harmon, with 11:34 left in the contest, giving Lakeland the lead, 2-1, when his shot went past the diving Vikings’ goalie into the left corner of the net. That led to a wild Hornet celebration in the left corner of the field, near the scoreboard, afterwards.

“Ryan had a great run, but his shot was blocked,” Gomes said. “I was able to get the ball and score. Scoring the game-winning goal felt amazing, especially when I have such an amazing team to celebrate with.” 

Gomes’ versatility is one of the things that makes him one of the best players in Section 1.  

“Gomes is a born leader who does so many things for this team,” Hourahan said. “He is the best defender in the midfield but now has added four goals and two assists this season, none bigger than the two goals tonight."

Hourahan said that this has been one of his most enjoyable seasons. 

“We lost three kids to academy soccer, but as I mentioned three-fourths of this roster has been playing for me since they were in the second grade including my oldest son [Conor] who is a junior on team as well,” Hourahan said.  

Lakeland’s team this season definitely plays with Hornet pride.  

“They are a bunch of kids who know how we want to play,” Hourahan said. “They are a group that picks each other up and plays for each other and for the Lakeland badge.” 

Recording eight saves in goal to preserve the hard-fought win was senior Aiden Plouffe.  

Mike Ettere, Denny Toxqui, Bernie Keating, Chris Paljusevic, Lucas Lobo, Ethan Hidalgo, Adam Eskander, Cayden Schaefer, Micah Minto, Kenyon Cawley, Christian Moscati, Colin Purcell, Hayden Fralish, Jayden Leon, Chris Gittleson, Santii Jaramillo, Matteo DiLaura (senior captain), Dan Flannery (senior captain), Justin Cardenas, Chase Diaz, Aden Jamal, Nick Jerussi (assistant coach), Rich Becker (assistant coach), and Tim O’Driscoll (assistant coach) also made up the Hornets’ roster on a milestone night for Hourahan.  

“We knew [Clarkstown South] was going to come in strong and challenge us, but we knew if we continued to play together we could win,” Gomes said.  

Lakeland’s next contest will be another tough one: 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 24, at Mahopac, which defeated Peekskill 4-0 on Tuesday, led by a three-goal effort from senior midfielder Christopher Flanagan.