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Boys Soccer: Ravens Hitting Their Stride

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By NICHOLAS J.E. MURRAY

nmurray@tampatrib.com

Published: January 22, 2009

TAMPA - After a middling campaign before the holiday break, Alonso High's boys soccer squad has picked up steam, winning 10 out of its last 11 games ahead of closing out the regular season against Middleton on Friday.

The rebound began at the Ridgewood holiday tournament, where the Ravens won three games in three days. The only setback since then was a 6-2 loss to county power Durant, with a pair of wins against Wharton an indicator of the team's new-found confidence entering the Class 6A-District 7 tournament next week.

"You do need that confidence going in, and I think that's one thing we will have," Ravens coach Ray DiPompo said. "We've been in different situations where we've been down and we've been up, so we've experienced a bunch of those situations, which as a coach you want. The last four games have been really good. Our defense had stepped up pretty good against some good teams, a Wharton team we shut out 1-0, a Leto team that had beaten us earlier in the season while scoring three goals."

Part of the change has come thanks to a pair of freshmen, Alejandro and Abraham Garcia, who have stabilized the Ravens' midfield. Alejandro leads the Ravens with eight assists. Abraham has seven, with both brothers having found the net twice. The brothers' creativity has in turn helped spark forward Johnathan Thomas, who has scored five goals in the last five games, including two in Alonso's 4-2 win against Wharton on Jan. 9. The stabilizing influence they have had has also led to the Ravens recording four consecutive shutouts.

"The Garcia boys, Alejandro and Abraham, have taken over midfield for us," DiPompo said. "They're doing a great job, they've gotten some experience, the guys have confidence in them, and they're really doing a great job."

FREEDOM FINDING FEET: After having almost a month between its Dec. 12 0-0 draw against Wharton, and the opening of the Wharton Invitational on Jan. 3, Freedom is starting to hit its stride.

"That's what we were hoping for," Freedom coach Dennis Derflinger said. "We were kind of struggling the first half of the season, we weren't playing as well as we should, and weren't getting the outcomes we expected for the first half. But it seems when we came out and played Durant, that was one of the better games we've played all year as far as maintaining possession and actually being able to score, which has been one of our main problems."

After having Bobby Huertas score 36 goals last season, no Patriot has reached double-digits so far this season. Deion Jones leads the team with nine goals, while Taylor Nalls has eight. Derflinger said the lack of goals, especially in the six ties the team has had this season, has been a point of frustration for the entire team.

"It was really tough losing someone who scored as many goals as Bobby Huertas did last year," Derflinger said. "I think everyone was feeling the pressure of trying to replace the scoring.

"The senior players tend, when we're not scoring well, to try and do a little more than they need to."

TERPS TURNAROUND? Tampa Prep only has one win in its last seven games, but Coach Doug Smith doesn't think that's a true indicator of the way the Terrapins have been playing.

"I'm actually pleased with how we've been playing," Smith said. "A couple of games earlier in the season, St. Stephen's, Sickles, Stanton Prep were probably our three worst of the year. We just didn't play well. Since we've been back in January, we've been playing well, and we're not getting the results, and that may just come down to a mental lapse either up front or in the back, and if we clean that up, get a little bit of luck I think we'll be in good shape."

The team, which was prolific in front of goal last season finishing with 102 goals, hasn't been this year. Wes Sever, in particular, has seen his goal total take a major hit, with only nine goals this season compared to 39 last season. Smith said he think that's because of the respect Sever has earned from opponents.

"He's being man-marked, if not singularly, two guys are on him every game, when last season Ryan Griffin took a lot of that focus which allowed Wes to score nearly 40 goals," Smith said. "We're trying to provide Wes with a little more support up top, and at the same time, we've got to be concerned with the defense. We're pretty settled on a lineup, but it's taking some time, and now the guys have to work through it."

The Terrapins' injury problems are clearing slightly. Defender Sean Regin is back from injury, but not at 100 percent. Neither is midfielder Alex Tuch, who has been nursing a foot injury for most of the season. Smith said he's been pleased with the attitudes the older members of the team have taken in addressing the team and asserting themselves.

"There's no doubt that I can see in the guys that the goal has not changed," Smith said. "We just need to put ourselves within that window of opportunity, and if we can do that, and get the guys to focus on finishing their chances and defensively, we should be OK."

TC GROWING CONFIDENCE: Tampa Catholic will look to build a little momentum in its final two games of the regular season against Keswick Christian and Admiral Farragut, but the Crusaders have already been able to build some confidence after good performances recently against Berkeley Prep and Tampa Prep.

Coach Kevin McCarron says the key to his team's performance has been how they've played in the first 10-15 minutes of a game.

"When you hear about Tampa Prep having the academy kids, and St. Pete Catholic having these big-time players, the younger kids don't have the confidence to play with them," McCarron said. "Then after maybe 10 or 15 minutes and we settle in, and the nerves settle down, we realize we are capable of playing with these guys."

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