‘This is the Best Feeling’: Fall Mountain Downs Stevens 2-1 on Friday Night

By Christopher Shaban
EAGLE TIMES STAFF
CLAREMONT — “This is the best feeling,” said Fall Mountain Head Coach Justin Parrott after his team beat the Cardinal 2-1 with a physical attack and solid goalkeeping.

Since Parrott took over the program three years ago, the Wildcats have come close but couldn’t get over the hump but on Friday, they grabbed a convincing win over their biggest rival after opening the season with a 6-0 blanking of Monadnock.

After a first half that saw both teams struggling to find their game, the next 40 minutes were a different story, as physical play and a much quicker pace took over the game. The best chance for a first half score came off the foot of a Wildcat when the ball rattled around in the goal box only to be smothered by the Cardinals Nevin Marsh to keep the match square. With Luke Belisle on the shelf with an injury, the midfield duties for Stevens fell on the shoulders of Jason Demars and Mason Ferland, who rotated from the defensive end into the blender at midfield.

“I think we came out with lots of intensity to start the second half, we were keeping our shape really well and found some lanes to attack,” said Parrott. With less than a minute gone to start the final frame, Aidan Beldin hammered a rebound off the post into the back of the cage to put Fall Mountain out front 1-0. “This game felt just like the Bernard cup last year, both teams wanted it bad,” said Beldin.

With the tempo increasing and things getting more physical, Devin Genes squared the match with a beautiful header into the upper corner that Wildcat keeper Aidan Parrott had no chance to get. As the on-field play became a bit more aggressive, a yellow card settled things down. Stevens has gone with a split goalkeeper rotation this season with a couple of good sophomores, as Maddox Foster stepped in between the pipes for the second half. Fall Mountain began to grab more possession time and when Matthew Harttwell ripped his shot into the twine, the Wildcats were feeling it. “That shot was just what we needed, it was the right moment for us, you can’t let Stevens hang around. We stayed focused the entire game, this team is growing,” said J. Parrott.

The Cardinals tried to push toward the Wildcat net, but Fall Mountain’s athleticism took over the game. “We kept going for the full 80 minutes, never let up and as a team we learned a lot from last season, I have high hopes,” said Beldin with a 2-1 win in their pockets.

“We are just inexperienced and sloppy right now, but we will continue to get better as we gain more experience. We are doing many things right and the younger players are starting to understand the speed and toughness of varsity soccer,” said Stevens Head Coach Jason Stone.