The No. 1-ranked and first-place Mitty Monarchs (13-1-6, 9-0-5 WCAL) battled the second-place Bellarmine Bells (12-4-4, 7-3-4) on Wednesday. Though the outcome of the game didn't have a great impact on the standings, Mitty’s Senior Day drew a large, enthusiastic crowd.
With less than a week until the start of WCAL playoffs, neither team budged an inch, displaying stellar defensive efforts and going the entire game scoreless.
Said Mitty coach Cesar Sanchez, “I think we played well. We faced a strong team, a second-place team. It evened out in the end.”
Mitty set the tempo of the game early, forcing the ball over to Bellarmine’s side and fighting to keep it there each time the Bells kicked it out. Several minutes in, Mitty midfielder Shane Luna took a lob from forward Connor Kurze and attempted to head it in, but Bell keeper James Gaffey was immediately there for the stop.
Bellarmine senior and captain Matt Dequiroz fired back with moves of his own, forcing the ball down the Mitty sideline and getting it to co-captain Marco Saglimbeni, whose shot from the corner was scooped up by Mitty keeper Ryan Foo.
“I definitely think we played better than we did at home,” said Dequiroz. “We can match them formation-wise, intensity-wise and ability wise. We really stepped it up this game, but we still have a lot to improve on.”
Foo’s booming kicks sent the ball back downfield, where Kurze was there to drive it into Bell’s 18-yard box. Kurze set the Bells on edge many times throughout the game, particularly in the first half. Many of his shots flew over the goalpost but were still serious threats for the Bells, though Gaffey and defender Austin Chun did an excellent job holding the Monarchs from scoring. In the 15th minute, Mitty midfielder Maiki Rainton juked past a few Bells down the left sideline and had an open shot until a sliding save by Chun sent the ball the other way.
The teams went back and forth during the first half, but Mitty may have controlled the game a bit more. Part of this could be attributed to the fierce glare from the sun, which the Bells’ keeper and defenders struggled with. Even still, the Monarchs couldn’t quite manage a score.
“I think our main issue was finishing. We created a lot of opportunities in the last three games but we haven’t been able to finish,” said Sanchez. “[But] we create good possession to create opportunities.”
In the second half, Mitty had to put up with the glare. Bellarmine bounced back quickly with a fierce barrage of attempted goals by Joseph Monteon, Saglimbeni, and Dequiroz. In the 11th minute, Dequiroz took the ball upfield, rolled around a Mitty defender and booted the ball past several other defenders to sophomore midfielder Jordan Arredondo, whose shot was blocked by Foo.
Perhaps the Bells’ greatest strength was their depth. “We had a lot of guys in today. We got to use a lot of guys. I tried to use everyone. I didn’t quite get there but those guys will play in the next match,” said Bellarmine coach Patrick Lowney. “One of our strengths is that we’re not just deep in numbers, we’re deep in talent. When we bring guys in, there’s not a drop-off in play, which is a great help to us.”
As Bellarmine picked up momentum, the Monarchs became increasingly aggressive. Between the 17th minute and 30th minute of the second half, three different players were called for holding. The Bells got into scoring position several times, but the referees’ calls weren’t enough of an advantage and the game finished scoreless.
Neither team’s shots were particularly on the mark, though there were a few exceptions. Many balls were lobbed high over the net or kicked down the line a few feet to the left and right of the goal.
“We did alright,” said Lowney. “It was their Senior Day, our last time playing on this field. We had all those other aspects of the game, so it probably ended up the way it should. Zero to zero, not too eventful around the goal, some missed opportunities, and pretty even play.”
Both teams enter the playoffs this weekend, Mitty with an 11 a.m. game Saturday at Archbishop Riordan (2-18, 0-14). The Bells will likely play Sacred Heart Cathedral (8-8-4, 4-7-3).
Looking ahead to the playoffs, Lowney said, “We’ll just be who we are and play hard and hopefully things go our way. It’s playoff time. There’s not a lot of time to work on anything drastically new. We’ll just keep reinforcing what we do well and hopefully things go our way.”
