(UPDATING)
CHESHIRE - The run of perfection by the Guilford boys' soccer team ended Tuesday afternoon, as the Indians settled for a 2-2 tie against Cheshire in a Southern Connecticut Conference contest.
If the result itself was unexpected against a three-loss Cheshire team, perhaps even more stunning was the fact that Guilford actually gave up two goals.
Through the first nine games, Guilford guarded the area in front of the net like it was protecting the entrance to Fort Knox. The Indians had surrendered only one goal all season, and that came five games ago in a 9-1 victory over Foran on September 29.
Guilford star Scott Leone is anxious as he awaits to go back into Tuesday's game against Cheshire.
Last season, Guilford yielded a mere two goals during the entire regular season. However, the Indians, who boast one of Connecticut’s most storied programs, fell short of winning their 13th state title, bowing to eventual champion Farmington, 2-1, in the semifinals.
Before that defeat, Guilford was ranked first in New England and seventh nationally. The Indians entered this season motivated by that bitter setback to Farmington and had been playing like a team on a mission.
If you think they sit back trying to win games 1-0, think again. A year ago, the Indians outscored their opponents 65-2, and they are on about the same pace this season.
Last Thursday, Guilford defeated Hand, 3-0, in a battle of unbeatens, then followed that up with a 7-0 drubbing of Wilbur Cross the following day. Heading into Tuesday’s contest, the Indians were outscoring their opponents, 39-1.
Two years ago, Guilford finished 14-4-1 before improving to 20-2 last season (its other loss was a 1-0 defeat to Amity on penalty kicks in the Southern Connecticut Conference championship game.
With a veteran core back from the 2008 team, including leading scorer Scott Leone, midfielders Matt Feldman, Darragh Lonergan and Michael Jacobsen; sweeper Chris O’Brein and defenseman Chris Sondej, clearly the next step for Guilford is to bring home another state championship.
Also, Nathan Trucks is back in goal for the Indians after missing last season with an injury, although he generally doesn’t face much work. On Tuesday, he was tested.
The Guilford players take a breather at halftime of Tuesday's 2-2 tie at Cheshire.
The Indians (9-0-1) may been caught off guard by a Cheshire team that turned up the pressure in the second half of a contest that became increasingly emotional and physical.
Guilford's Matt Feldman was assessed a red card for a pair of tripping fouls within a three-minute span, and Cheshire's Eric Rothbart received a similar penalty after tripping Longergan just outside the penalty area.
Cheshire's effort paid off, as the Rams scored a pair of goals in the second half (Rothbart and Greg Lionetti), twice erasing one-goal deficits.
Guilford's best player, Leone, may have been at less than 100 percent, as he appeared to suffer some type of right thigh injury that kept him on the sidelines for the final 19 minutes of the first half. Still, he scored with 16 minutes left in regulation to give Guilford a 2-1 lead after Ben Colter opened the scoring in the first half.
No one would be shocked if the semifinal pairings in Class LL turn out to be the same as last season (Guilford vs. Farmington and Staples against Glastonbury).
However, there are no guarantees in a brutally competitive division, where one loss can make the difference between a No. 1 seed in the state tournament and a No. 7 or No. 8 seed.
Glastonbury (10-0-0) is now left standing as the only perfect team in Class LL. However, Naugatuck (8-0-1) also is unbeaten, and there are 10 other teams with only one defeat – a remarkable number two-thirds of the way through the regular season.
The list of one-loss teams (through Tuesday) are: Staples (9-1-0), Amity (9-1-0), Ridgefield (8-1-0), Norwich Free Academy (6-1-0), Fairfield Prep (7-1-1), Farmington (8-1-1), Masuk (8-1-1), Newtown (8-1-1), Greenwich (6-1-2) and Pomperaug (4-1-4).
While Guilford has allowed the fewest goals, it’s difficult to project a clear favorite heading into next month’s state tournament.
Glastonbury opened the season with a 3-2 victory over Farmington, avenging a 2-1 loss to the Indians in last year’s state final. Still, the Tomahawks haven’t been quite as dominant as Guilford, playing four one-goal games, including a 2-1 win over E.O. Smith on Friday (Guilford has won all of its games by at least three goals).
Farmington started 1-1-1, but has since reeled off six straight shutout victories, and seems to be gathering momentum for the state tournament.
Staples, the premier program in Fairfield County with 25 FCIAC titles in 50 years, never can be counted out, but the Wreckers turned in a poor effort over the weekend, suffering a 3-1 loss at Brookfield on Saturday. The three goals matched the total Staples yielded in its first eight games combined. The Wreckers did rebound with a 3-0 win over New Canaan two days later.
If there’s one other program that might be able to break through, it could be Ridgefield, the 2007 FCIAC champions, although the Tigers were stunned at Wilton, 1-0, on Monday. Ridgefield hosts Staples on Friday in what could be the game of the year in the FCIAC.
The bottom line is that there are going to some strong teams that won’t get past the quarterfinals of the Class LL state tournament.
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