Harvard members of the U15 FC Stars Soccer Team (left to right): Coach Matt Davison, Cody Osgood, Zach Clements, and Kevin Molinaro. (Photos by Rob Williams)
This past weekend three Bromfield athletes traveled to Virginia Beach, Virginia, with their FC Stars of Massachusetts club soccer team. Coached by Bromfield graduate Matt Davison, they played in the premier division of the Virginia Beach Spring Classic Tournament Saturday, March 24, and Sunday, March 25. The Stars won two of their three games overall.
During the first game, the team faced off against the Southwestern Youth Copperheads of Virginia. Early into the contest, freshman Cody Osgood controlled a ball off his chest and struck a left-footed shot past the goalie. Osgood, a center midfielder, soon put his team ahead by another goal when he ran onto a through ball while beating two defenders and the goalie.
Not wanting to be left out of the scoring action, freshman forward Zach Clements cleaned up a loose ball rebound for a goal. Before the game ended the Copperheads tied up the score. With less than a minute remaining in the game sophomore defender Kevin Molinaro began an attack by sending the ball up the right side of the field. After a series of quick passes, the Stars scored the game-winning goal for a 4–3 finish.
Kevin Molinaro (#5) and Cody Osgood turn to watch a ball sail into their goalie’s arms during an opponent’s free kick situation.
In the second game on Saturday, the Stars also won by a one-goal margin. Early into the game Osgood chased down a ball in the right corner. He crossed the ball into a teammate who chested the ball down into the net. Before the end of the first half, Clements scored his second goal of the tournament. The Virginia Rush Swoosh team needed a dead-ball play to score its only goal. It came off a rebound. The Stars’ defense held strong throughout the 70-minute game that finished 2–1. Included as a crucial part of the flat-back four defenders, Molinaro played impressively in only his second game with the team.
Going into Sunday, the Stars needed to defeat the host Beach FC team in order to advance to the finals. The host team proved too much for the Stars, though, and they lost the game by one goal.
The team now begins to practice for the upcoming Maple Club soccer season, which begins on Sunday.
