Big Red setback by Hilltoppers

The Big Red travelled to Worcester Academy for a mid-week contest against the Hilltoppers. SPS got off to a solid start. The first 15 minutes saw the Big Red make the home side work. Asun Zhu and Seb Beech were consistent in changing the point of attack and Matt Baptiste and Willer Iler found some space on the flanks. Worcester also tried to get side to side but defenders AJ Zoltowski, Pat Ricca , Iago Arango and Blake Truchon closed down spaces well. Keeper Teddy Sulger came back from semi-retirement and gave the team a big lift. Teddy was vocal, aggressive, and showed courage throughout the match. As the half wore on, Worcester began to get the ball behind the Big Red defense, and this created opportunities. At the thirty-minute mark a Worcester corner kick was allowed to land in the box and a Hilltopper was able to head to ball into the upper corner. Within three minutes Worcester capitalized on a through ball and took a two goal lead. The Big Red was reeling and lost some of their trademark energy. Before the half ended, Worcester scored another pair of goals to go into the break up 4 – nil.

With some inspirational words from Co-captain Pat Ricca during the halftime, the club rallied in the second half and made the commitment to work for each other. SPS kept the ball for longer periods and defended with a renewed intensity. Worcester continued to push to increase their lead. Blake Truchon cleared one chance off the goal line while Teddy Sulger made several excellent save on point blank chances. While the result was not what the club wanted, the second forty – five minutes did help to them understand what it means to compete and what they are capable of doing when they work together. A few more days of training and the Big Red will be back on the road to Northfield on Saturday.

Go Big Red!

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Players Mentioned

#4 Blake Truchon: D; Senior; 2026

#6 Asun Zhu: M, F; Senior; 2026

#23 Iago Arango: Junior; 2027

Players Mentioned

#4 Blake Truchon
: Senior; 2026
: D

#6 Asun Zhu
: Senior; 2026
: M, F

#23 Iago Arango
: Junior; 2027

Players Mentioned

#4 Blake Truchon

#6 Asun Zhu

#23 Iago Arango

Players Mentioned

#4 Blake Truchon

#6 Asun Zhu

#23 Iago Arango