Ichabod Crane Falls To Center Moriches In State Championship
Picture: Kelly Firmbach
That was a very tough pill to swallow for the Ichabod Crane Riders Boys Varsity Soccer team. They fell in the NYSPHSAA State Championship game to Center Moriches 4-0 on Sunday morning.
The Riders came into this game with a record of 20-0-1 and were the #2 team in the state. The Red Devils had a record of 21-0-0 and were the #1 team in the state.
Right from kickoff the Red Devils were trying to push the pace, going as fast as possible, and using their speed to do it. The Riders like to slow it down more, so this was a problem for them. For the first 39 minutes of the first half both sides were pretty equal, Center Moriches had a few more shots than the Riders but nothing huge. With about 36 seconds left in the half, the Red Devils had a corner kick. Ben Hamilton was able to stick his foot in there and put it in the net and give the Red Devils a 1-0 lead at half.
The Riders came out of the half a bit flat. They surrendered another goal to Hamilton when he cut inside the box and poked a shot off of the Riders keeper and in the goal. 4 minutes later, Matt Alifano put a shot just over Riders keeper, Spencer Bates’ hand and just under the crossbar for the score. Just 2 minutes later Anthony Carlucci scored for the Riders, but it was called back when ICC got called for a foul at the top of the box. With 10 minutes to go, Eric Amaya capped off the scoring with a goal to put Center Moriches up 4-0.
Yes, Ichabod Crane lost. But this was nothing short of an incredible season for the Riders. Making it to the state championship was a phenomenal accomplishment. When you look back on all that this team has done, making it to the state final 4, making it to the state championship, 3 All-State players, 20-1-1 overall record, Colonial Council Champions, Section 2 Class B Champions, Class B Regional Champions. The list goes on and on, but this team was one of the best teams I’ve ever seen. They were so fun to watch play together, it was honestly a treat.
