It was “Andover Day” on Saturday and we played to a 1-1 tie. Another intense effort from the whole team led to what likely should have been a win for us. We scored first when Matteo Stewart (’24) settled a tough ball at the top of the box and laid a perfect ball to Andrew Lewis (’25) who beat the Andover keeper with a left-footed banger far panel. We had several more chances, including a penalty kick, but came into halftime up only 1-0. We were feeling good and knew Andover would push in the second half. Keeper Joe Berman (’25) and our stingy defense stemmed repeated Andover attacks with excellent tackling and clearances, but Andover capitalized early in the second half on a “hit and chase” from the back to even things up 1-1. Both teams had more chances and yet both defenses proved too strong. Despite the aggravation of a this result, finishing at 1-1 is a point of pride considering Andover’s quality program and that we haven’t beaten them in several years. Coach Corliss and I are extremely proud of this group’s resilience and team play; we share the frustration and responsibility of our lack of clutch goals. Scoring goals at every level of soccer is difficult and often the final score doesn’t tell the story well. Yes, winning is preferred, and yet learning to stick together as a team and focus on the positive play by starters and subs alike must be our takeaways. There are simply too many accolades to express here; every player should be proud of his contributions. We will continue to try new ways to find the twine in our final two weeks of the season. Onward!