By PAUL GOTHAM
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Jody Wyant delivered a clear message from the sidelines.
With his Spencerport boys’ soccer team doubling its lead late in the second half, the second-year coach wanted his squad to learn from earlier mistakes.
“Don’t let down like you did after the first goal!” Wyant declared.
The Rangers responded with 16-plus minutes of intensity and closed out a 2-0 win over Irondequoit in Monroe County Division II action on Friday.
“There was definitely a dip after the first goal,” Wyant said referring to a first-half marker from senior Vince Ranieri. “You always worry about that. You kinda let up a little bit. We wanted to ensure that we didn’t have that same letdown that we had after that first goal. We can’t afford that.”
Sujan Rajamohan converted a penalty pick with 16:43 remaining in the contest to give Spencerport the much-needed breathing room.
From there the Rangers created four scoring opportunities with Ranieri and Jake Zimmerman trading services from opposite wings. A corner kick followed in which Patrick Uebelacker narrowly missed putting the cross from Rajamohan into the back of the net, and Uebelacker had another chance with a free kick from 30 yards out.
Patrick Uebelacker comes this close to making it a 3-0 game. pic.twitter.com/N2cCpqUmBp
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 9, 2020
“In the first half and the start of the second half we just weren’t finding our targets up top,” Wyant explained. “We were reverting back to some bad habits. We wanted to settle things down and get into the way we want to play the game.”
With the late to start to the season because of the impact from COVID-19, officials have employed a timeout at or near the 20-minute mark of both halves. The two-minute break gives players a chance for a drink. The timeout also creates an opportunity for strategic moves. The Rangers had their best chances late in the game.
“There were two tactical adjustments that we tried to make at that point,” Wyant said of the timeout. “I just said to them ‘guys this is the start of the season. We have to ensure that we get off on the right foot.’ You can’t sit on a one-nothing lead. It can be dangerous. We had to go out there and find another goal anyway possible.I felt like that happened in that second 20 of the second half.”
Coming out of the timeout, Ranieri let fly with a blast from just outside the 18-yard box. The Rangers continued to apply the pressure before Rajamohan was fouled inside the area resulting in the penalty shot.
Taking over in goal
David Schmidt made a pair of stops in his first varsity start for the shutout. The senior goalkeeper came off his line to take away a first-half opportunity for Irondequoit’s Carraig Jones. Then in the second half, Schmidt corralled in a free kick in traffic.
“That was a key save,” Wyant said of the second-half stop. “If they put the ball in the back of the net there, it’s a whole new ball game. It was crucial save.”
Schmidt steps into the role previously occupied by All-County performer Jadon Schlierf who allowed just five goals in Spencerport’s first 17 games of 2019. Schmidt made a smooth transition in his first appearance.
“I’m proud of him for getting that clean sheet.”
David Schmidt comes off the line to take away a scoring opportunity for Carraig Jones. @RangersBSoccer 1 @WIEagles 0 pic.twitter.com/HfEj5oxszd
— Paul Gotham (@PickinSplinters) October 9, 2020
Freshman Kyle Milburn picked up the assist on Ranieri’s first-half tally.
A year ago, Spencerport earned the top seed in the Class A1 tournament with a regular season record of 13-2-1. The Rangers climbed to No. 13 in the NYS rankings before falling to Greece Arcadia in the sectional semifinals. The challenge now is to build off that success in a season adjusted by the pandemic.
“It’s a short season,” said Wyant. “Wins are precious.”
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