By Michael Letendre
BRISTOL – It was only a matter of time before the Bristol Eastern boys soccer program was going to take a big trip to the pay window in 2021.
The Lancers have been playing better as of late, showing a bit more chemistry against the top squads of the Central Connecticut Conference.
And the Lancers are a bit richer after Thursday night as the locals dropped Wethersfield by a 2-0 final from Alumni Field in Bristol.
The Eagles – the No. 6 ranked squad in the state – was eventually shutout by the Lancers, moving to 10-2-2 overall on the season.
Eastern improved to 4-10-1, winning two of its last three matches, with a date against Bristol Central next Tuesday (7 p.m.) looming on the docket – also from Alumni Field.
It was an exciting match according to Eastern head coach Bill Sweet as Dom Femiak led the charge with two goals, his eighth and ninth tallies of the campaign.
The game was scoreless over the first half with Wethersfield having more of the possession and the Lancers countering with quick attacks by Femiak, Eddie Ansah, and Adam Borry.
Eastern keeper Dylan Piazza was steady in the back, handling all four of the Eagles’ first-half shots, and initiating the Lancers’ counters with sharp clearances.
“We challenged our backs, after the Glastonbury game, to win more balls and stay compact,” said Sweet. “They certainly rose to the occasion tonight against a smooth passing attack. Carter Harris, Connor Cyr, Preston Guarda, and Andre Gonzalez were solid tonight. The two Borry brothers, Adam and Tyler, split time directing the defense, and then jumped into our offense.”
It was Adam Borry whose play brought about the first Eastern goal as he took a Cody Greger pass and cut inside the Wethersfield penalty area.
He was fouled in the box as Eastern was awarded a penalty kick.
Femiak calmly planted the ball past Wethersfield keeper Ricky Torres with 34:49 to play in the second half to make it a 1-0 contest.
The Eagles then mounted a little pressure, sending an extra player forward, but Eastern managed to frustrate the visiting aggression over the last third of the contest.
And then the Kingstreeters added a bit of insurance with another goal.
With 19:55 remaining, Ty Borry won a ball near midfield and sent Femiak a perfectly placed pass that snuck through.
Femiak beat the defense with a blast into the left inside of the net as Eastern squared up a 2-0 edge.
“We had smart play throughout, due in part to Donyell Maxwell’s steady midfield play,” said Sweet. “The energy brought by our subs of Oscar Twardy, Carlos Portillo, Dylan Bartucca, and Brady Bell helped raise our game.”
Piazza ended up with nine saves over the shoutout victory while Torres scooped in five in the losing effort.
Wethersfield outshot the Lancers, 12- 7, but couldn’t score over a tough eighty minutes of play.
