BY HAILEY BROWN
For some teams, coming off of a long break can cause some difficulty to bounce back into the swing of competing. For the Cowboys, this did not seem to be the case. This week, the Cowboys were scheduled to have a game the day after a break and were determined as always to beat the opposing team. As Cooper City hit the field to warm up with the balls, they split into their usual groups and warmed up the same way as they always do.
On Monday, November 27, the boys varsity soccer team took on Hollywood Hills on the Cowboys home field in a non-district game. The Cowboys were able to control the game from the very beginning and ultimately win the game 5-1.
The Cowboys started off the game very strong and immediately was able to get the ball down the field and earn themselves a corner kick. The ball was cleared by the Spartans, but the Cowboys were able to bring the ball back down again and earn themselves another corner kick. Andrew Hausdorff took the corner and Ethan Muncan was able to make contact with the ball, putting the ball in the back of the net in the first two minutes of the game.
At the whistle to play, Hollywood Hills was hungry to tie the game. The Spartans were able to get past the Cowboys defense, but couldn’t finish, sending a shot wide of the goal. The ball was able to make it back up the field and to Mateo Upegui’s feet. Upegui was able to send the ball to Michael Hebding creating a one on one with the goalie that was called by the ref as an offsides. A couple minutes later in the game, Upegui was fouled in the box by the Spartans, earning the Cowboys a penalty shot. Noah Gannon took the penalty and was able to send a shot right past the keeper and into the goal, scoring the second point for the Cowboys in the first nine minutes of the game. Hollywood Hills was able to make their way down the field and send a cross over Cooper City’s defense, and right to a Spartan player. They were able to get a head on it but sent it high and towards the corner before the keeper, Cole Martin, was able to make the save. The Cowboys ended the half in the lead, with a score 2-0.
The second half started off rather slow for the Cowboys. It wasn’t until Hollywood Hills scored that Cooper City started to pick it up. The Spartans were able to dribble through the Cowboys defense and get a shot off low and to the corner that the keeper was unable to save. With the score at 2-1, the Cowboys worked on getting the ball down the field. Brian Rios was able to take the ball down the line and dribble in the box and get a shot off. The shot made its way right past the keeper and in the net, putting the Cowboys ahead by two points. Later in the game, Pedro Wolf was also able to dribble through Spartan territory and get another shot off that the Hollywood Hills keeper was unable to save. With not much time left in the game, Emre Taskin was able to score off the rebound off a shot taken by another Cowboy player. The Cowboys hope to continue this momentum in their next district game against Miramar on Wednesday, November 29.
“I think we played very well,” Taskin said. “The team was composed and calm even though it was an emotional game for the seniors.”
Final Score: Cooper City 5, Hollywood Hills 1
Photo by Ben Milgram
