Youth Soccer

Lincolnville, Hope co-ed middle school soccer programs declared co-champs after scoreless match

Sat, 10/22/2016 - 11:45pm

For the second year in a row, the Lincolnville Lynx and the Hope Hawks met in the Busline League Coed soccer championship game under threatening skies, and for the second year in a row, the weather gods were kind to both teams as the major rain held off until the last minute or so of the game.

The result of the game was not quite the same, however.

While Lincolnville was able to repeat as champions, they had to share the title with Hope as the two very evenly matched teams battled to a 0-0 tie.

The game was primarily played in the midfield area with multiple forays into scoring range by each team, but neither team was able to decisively find the net. This was a clear testimonial to the strength of both defenses as they succeeded in minimizing the number of actual shots on net by turning try after try aside. Not to denigrate the offensive units at all; both teams moved the ball well up the field but simply could not find the finisher against the strong containment defenses that they faced. The result was a tense game as the teams fought their way through two halves and two overtimes.

From the Lincolnville perspective, repeating as champions is always an impressive feat, even if one has to tie to do it. Despite having lost six starting players from last year’s playoff team, the Lynx were able to rebuild at least in part to the arrival of two new players to the squad, winger Jackson Bernier and striker Yonah Wienges. Both provided tremendous offensive punch throughout the season finishing with a total of 44 scoring points between them. Wienges will be missed next year, but the Lynx will still have the services of Bernier for their effort to defend this year’s championship title. Joining Wienges and Bernier on the offensive line were wingers Hanna Hallundbaek, Jordan Peasley, and Joey LaChance. They put in valuable minutes during the game contributing strongly to the overall offensive effort and were major contributors to the team’s 109 total scoring points, the second highest total an LCS team has been able to amass in a season. At midfield, Kara Andrews and Emmit Dayhoof have been stalwarts all season, and helped Lincolnville largely control the midfield area for a good part of the championship as well as assisting Lincolnville’s strong defense throughout the game. Defenders Lincoln Outerbridge—another player new to the team and a welcome addition—and Rosa LaChance were critical members of the Lynx’s defensive line turning in excellent performances on the defensive wings and assisting stopper Owen Markowitz in blunting the Hawks’ otherwise potent offense. Markowitz’s aggressive play and strong, reliable kicks saved Lincolnville on many occasions throughout the game.

The team’s tri-captains deserve special mention. Sweeper Wyatt Munson has been a standout all season long. Incredibly fast, with dependable skills and good instincts, Munson has anchored the defensive line all year long. Virtually unbeatable given his ability to overtake and tackle almost any offensive opponent, Munson turned aside and cleared many a threatening long ball tossed into the LCS end. His performance cannot be praised too highly. Then there is midfielder Eric Andrews, Lincolnville’s playmaker par excellence. His confident, accurate passing put the Hawks in danger throughout the game. Playing his last game as an LCS student, Andrews ended his career with 42 total scoring points, good for a tie for fifth place on the all time career scoring list, and his 30 assists—22 of them this season—put him in second place on the career assists list, a testimonial to his playmaking abilities. Those abilities, combined with the strength of LSC’s offensive unit of K. Andrews, Dayhoof, Bernier, and Wienges, achieved an average of 5 goals per game, the second highest average an LCS team has ever achieved and a points per game average of 8.38, third highest on the team stats list. Finally, Matt Kremin is rapidly establishing himself as LCS’s leading career keeper. Strong, savvy about patrolling the box to choke off through passes, and with exceptional skills, Kremin finished the season with a stingy 0.46 goals against average, by far the lowest for an LCS season. In addition, Kremin racked up a total of nine shutouts out of 13 games played for a shutout percentage of 69%, another new team record. And—good news for LCS fans—he will be back to mind the nets next year as LCS strives for a three-peat. 


Ben Edes is the coach of the Lincolnville co-ed soccer program. 

Reach the sports department at: sports@penbaypilot.com.