Announcement
The EFA Boys Varsity soccer team earned a well-played 2-0 shutout victory over the Class AA Binghamton Patriots. The win marked the third consecutive shutout against Binghamton (2nd this season) and fourth shutout of the season for Junior goalkeeper Luke Ford.
Although controlling the pace of play for the first 30 minutes of the match, Binghamton senior goalkeeper Sam Guy kept the Patriots in the game with some fantastic saves on well-hit Academy shots. Guy turned away lasers from Nick Lian, Ross Holden, and Kail Burfield consecutively to keep the Devils at bay during the first half. However, EFA would strike with 9:11 remining on arguably thier best goal of the 2009 season. Lian controlled a ball played into the attacking third and immediately found freshman Alex Varkatzas streaking up the left side of the pitch. Alex looked central to senior captain Ross Holden, who one-timed a perfected placed ball through the Binghamton defense to an on running Lian. Lian's first touch was flawless and he powered the ball into the top of the net, skimming the underside of the crossbar to give EFA a 1-0 lead.
Minutes later, Lian won a 50/50 ball in the Binghamton box and it was miscleared by a defender. Varkatzas gathered the ball in with his left foot and calmly slotted a side-foot shot past Sam Guy to give EFA a 2-0 lead and his team-leading 5th goal of the season. That lead is all EFA would need as they made some tactical changes in thier system of play to preserve the shutout for the last 40 minutes. Lian was moved back to centerback in the Devils' marquee flat back four, but the scoring opportunities continued to come throughout the match. Some sloppy finishing, combined with some fantastic goalkeeping kept the score at 2-0.
Overall, EFA played very well and earned a much needed STAC victory and FIVE big sectional points. The match was a success in terms of scoring opportunities and everyone saw some time on the field. EFA moves to 5-3-1 and travels to state-ranked Ithaca on Wednesday before facing crosstown rival Elmira Southside on Friday.
