Round 1..

            The last day of double sessions is always a relief, as preseason comes to an end. The ice baths are used less frequently, there’s less limping around the locker room, and you see the energy building around the team as we get closer and closer to game 1.

            Game day arrived pretty quickly. August 22^nd seemed like a long time ago as we got on the field for our practice at 7pm on Thursday night. The practice went as usual, with the famous “One Touch Game” at the end - luckily my team came out with a win after some bangers and some laughs.

            As we entered the Ratty on Friday afternoon for our pregame meal, you could see some nerves and some excitement throughout the team. I’m not sure if it was about the game or about the fish that the Ratty was serving for “Linner” at 3:30pm that day.

Soon enough, we were warming up across from Bryant on Stevenson and the stands were slowly being filled. This was a classic home opener for us, with a lot of gritty performances, including some new guys showing they are “gamers.” The game went as expected, with a lot of set pieces from Bryant and we were counter attacking pretty well – Voltaire almost scored as he got in behind their backline, but the keeper made a decent save to keep the game at 0s going into halftime.

            As we went out for the second half, we all knew there would be limited chances on goal, but we needed to take full advantage when they came about. I gotta say, Voltaire did… and scored a banger. A ball lofted forward from a free kick was headed down to V by Pepe, which Voltaire then proceeded to take off his chest, shift from his right foot to his left, lean back (almost doing the Bernie) and “shank” (sorry V) with the outside of his left foot into the side netting. The crowd of over 1,500 people went nuts.

            In typical BMS style, we held on for dear life (our parents are probably losing years off their lives each game), and we were able to come out with a huge first home victory.

            For those who are not BMS alums, the Friday – Sunday turnaround for games is usually one of the hardest for the team each year. A lot of guys played big minutes of Friday night, we were at home, there was a huge crowd, it was our first game, etc. etc. Therefore, the Saturday session was pretty light, with some guys putting in more work than others – mostly focused on recovery.

            Sunday at Providence College was a little bit of a different atmosphere than Stevenson on Friday night. The crowd was mostly parents, and nowhere near 1,500. Regardless, the team brought a lot of energy onto the field after being pent up in 3 white vans on an extremely LONG trip from Brown (approximately 5 minutes).

            We all knew the PC was going to be tough. PC is a Big East opponent, cross-town rival, and this was for Rhode Island bragging rights. We were attempting to keep the “Ocean State Cup” in our possession for another year, and we came really close to fulfilling that goal (Co-Champs really doesn’t count). The game started out pretty back and forth, with each team struggling to connect passes on a dismal playing surface. With about a minute left in the first half, PC was able to successfully complete a short corner, and the ball ended up at the back post, where a Providence player headed it towards goal. Whether or not the ball crossed the line, I do not know, but I do know that Weendog made an unreal save. Unfortunately, the sideline ref deemed it a goal and PC took the 1-0 lead into half time.

            After some inspirational words from coach Laughlin, we came out flying in the second half, grabbing a goal of our own. Pepe settled a ball thrown into him and sent it to the back post. The ball was looping and must have stayed in the air for about 3 minutes. As the left back for PC gazed at that beauty of a ball, DT was able to sneak in behind him and head-knee-ab-shin the ball into the back of the net. We were then back level at 1-1.

            The rest of the game was hard fought, with each team creating their own chances, but no real threats. At the end of 90 minutes, we were still tied and headed into golden goal overtime. The 20 minutes went by quickly and the game ended in a tie. We were crowned Co-Champions of the Ocean State Cup.

            Overall, the team was happy with the weekend’s results. Although it would have been great to win both games, a win and a tie is not a bad way to start the season. We are looking forward to Washington on Friday at 7pm and hope we can get the same type of crowd and support we did for Bryant.

Back to the nitty gritty - Jack Kuntz