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On Monday night, the Buchholz Bobcats faced the Newberry Panthers. Both teams are coming in with an 0-2 record, hoping to end the losing streak. The Bobcats seized the opportunity and secured a 14-4 victory.
Buchholz’s Outstanding First Half
The first face-off of the night started with Buchholz midfielder John Haugh swiftly gaining possession. Buchholz’s offense took the time to evaluate Newberry’s defensive tactics. Once assessed, Buchholz began their aggressive and assertive plays. Newberry gained a pick; however, Buchholz’s defense got the ball back to the offense. Alexander Gutenmann then scores the first point of the night for Buchholz.
Buchholz continued to gain possession during face-offs scoring back-to-back. Impressive plays by John Haugh, gaining control at face-off and passing the ball to one of his attackmen or midfielders, where they would shoot and score.
The video shows John Haugh and Camden Beckett at face-off. Within 10 seconds, John Haugh gains possession, runs downfield, and passes the ball to Reid Wagner, where Reid Wagner scored a point.
Buchholz’s players were confident and assertive on the field. An impressive play by Alexander Gutenmann being covered by four Newberry players and still being able to gain a few yards before the ball became a ground ball. Which was recovered and scored a point for Buchholz.
After the fourth face-off of the second quarter, Newberry’s attackmen player, Steven Rubert, scored their first point with 5 minutes left on the clock.
Ending the first half with a score of 12-1, Buchholz took a strong lead. Throughout the first half, Buchholz was heavily playing offense. They were assertive when the defense was playing, clearing the ball and completing passes toward the crease. Newberry needed a change of pace against Buchholz’s quick and agile players.
Pace Slows Down in the Second Half
Once the second half began, Newberry picked up the pace and asserted dominance on the field. They were working with the opposing players. Newberry was making shots but was blocked by the goalie, James Robinson. Buchholz’s defense slows down, and then Newberry scores their second point in the game. Both teams make mistakes like incomplete passes and missing shots. During this half, the teams had a lot of back and forth. As the second half went on, both teams made more attempts, resulting in misses.
With less than 4 minutes on the clock, Buchholz’s freshman Ryan Pomeranz scores for the first time in his high school career. The pressure of the clock started coming down on both teams at the last minute. There was a fight for the ground ball; Newberry got the last possession of the night and attempted to gain one final point in the game but was blocked by James Robinson, the goalie.
The final score was 14-4, Buchholz claiming their first victory this season.
Takeaways
Buchholz’s players were assertive and aggressive throughout the entirety of the game. Excellent communication among players and utilizing all positions on the field. Their ability to claim possession in face-offs and be quick on their feet allowed them to score consecutively in the first half. Players have a good gauge of who they can pass to. They withstand heavy coverage from the opposing team. Whenever there is pressure from the clock, players would make big plays in the last seconds.
Newberry’s players started the game by making passive plays and feeling out the field against Buchholz—great blocks from Parker Wilson, the goalie. After the first half, Newberry picked up the pace and showed more confidence in making more forward plays. Their defense stepped up and matched the energy of Buchholz’s players. This put pressure on Buchholz’s offense, forcing them to miss shots and lose possession of the ball. This allowed for Newberry’s offense to show off in the second half.
I spoke with Buchholz player John Haugh and Team Captain Joseph Crispen after the game about their favorite moment, and they both agreed:
“Seeing our own underclassman score [Ryan Pomeranz] for the first time as a Bobcat.” -Joseph Crispen
