Warriors struggle to find net in loss to Providence

By Casey Callanan

It is no secret that Wheaton Academy's team is rich in talent.

That was demonstrated after it controlled the ball for nearly the entire match during a 3-1 home loss to Providence Catholic on Thursday.

But the problem the Warriors have been facing this season is something that talent alone can't fix, according to head coach Jeff Brooke.

"We possessed the ball really well," Brooke said. "We're looking for guys to step up and score.

"We need players to hold our morale up especially when strange things happen like a couple of the goals Providence had."

The Celtics (3-3) scored their third and final goal in bizarre fashion.

With an onslaught of Providence attackers swarming the net, the ball looked as though it was possibly cleared away by Warrior defenders.

After a brief delay, the line judge ruled the ball had crossed the goal line before it was cleared.

Providence's sideline erupted with cheers as the Warrior fans were left confused.

The goal was credited to sophomore Brandon Picciolini and it came with less then seven minutes to play. It put the game out of reach for Wheaton.

With the loss, the Warriors (3-3) are officially eliminated from advancing in the Pepsi Showdown tournament.

Wheaton lost a penalty kick shootout 4-3 against Larkin on Tuesday in the tournament opener.

"Our communication is there, but in critical moments it's lacking," said Warrior senior Devin Moore.

"We had a couple of breakdowns that led to (Providence) goals. I take it as a positive, though, because it's an easy thing to fix."

Providence goalie Brian McNamee had to play on his toes the entire game with the Warrior attack firing away shots in his direction.

McNamee had five saves in the first half to keep Wheaton Academy scoreless going in to the break.

Neither team could capitalize on any opportunity before the Celtics got their first goal with just under three minutes to play in the half.

The outstanding defensive play of Warrior seniors William West and Trevor Adams became the main reason the game went scoreless for the first 47 minutes.

West and Adams constantly thwarted opportunities that the Celtic attack attempted to strike past them.

The Warriors came out of halftime with a new found energy and less than one minute into the second half, senior Stephen Fernandes tied the game at 1-1.

"We were fired up at halftime and we thought the game was on us at that point," Moore said.

"We said we couldn't lose unless we gave the game to (Providence) and with no disrespect to them, we feel like that's what happened."

Seven and a half minutes after Fernandes tied the game, Providence was able to snag the goal back and gain the lead after Max Picard found the back of the net.

"Our motto is after we score we give the next two minutes of everything we have," Fernandes said. "Then they scored their second goal and our intensity just dropped."

Fernandes knows the road will not get any easier from this point without keeping up the intensity.

"It all starts in practice and we need everyone to step up," Fernandes said. "We controlled the ball for the majority of the game. We just have to be hungrier and score."

Although they aren't going to advance in the Showdown, the Warriors will continue play in the tournament against Metea Valley on Saturday.

"We're definitely coming Saturday with everything we have," Fernandes said.

Moore is equally as excited to return to action this weekend.

"I have faith in the team that we will bounce back and learn from today's game," Moore said.