You can't see the ball because Jake Faford of Cherry Hill East slipped it past Washington Township goalie Jim Jackson for the game's first goal
CHERRY HILL - It can be frustrating to play well yet not get the desired result.
Just ask the Cherry Hill East boys’ soccer team.
A group that has struggled to win close games, the Cougars have been in desperate need of something to turn their season around.
Veteran coach Karl Moehlmann hopes Wednesday’s 5-3 Olympic American victory over top-ranked Washington Township will do the trick.
“We’ve been waiting for a turnaround, a breakthrough. Maybe this is it for us,” Moehlmann said. “This was not your normal game, but we had nothing to lose.
“They beat us 5-1 at their place. Maybe they came in here with the idea they were going to beat us. Our results have not been very good. Maybe psychologically they took it easy.”
Eric Jordan of Washington Township looks to get past the defense of Cherry Hill East's Matt Grazioli in the second half
The unranked Cougars (4-4-2) held leads of 2-0 and 3-1 before Washington Township (7-2-1) evened the score at 3-3 heading into halftime. An early goal by Andrew Adler on a defensive lapse put Cherry Hill East up to stay, with Greg Weinstock adding an insurance tally.
The Minutemen had four shots on goal in the second half, but Steve Oberlander was equal to the challenge after coming off the bench.
“I don’t know what happened. We’re usually a lot more solid in the back,” Washington Township coach Shane Snyder said. “We didn’t play very well. We didn’t hold possession in the midfield and some turnovers led to their breaks. They capitalized and had some nice goals.
“At the end of the first half we were pressing to get a couple of chances to make it 4-3. Then they came out in the second half and got a goal. We never settled down in the second half and didn’t play good soccer.”
Zach Steinbock had two first-half goals for Cherry Hill East, while Jake Faford connected on the team’s first tally. Joe Casaletto, Eric Jordan and Vince Guzzo scored for the Minutemen.
“We’ve been struggling as of recently. We’ve been playing well but the results just haven’t been showing up,” Steinbock said. “But we always have confidence in ourselves. We have a great group, a load of talent. On any given day, we can beat any team.”
East goalie Steve Oberlander got just enough of his hand on the ball to get it out from in front of the goal
East could have buried their heads after surrendering a two-goal lead. Momentum was clearly in Washington Township’s favor, but the Cougars didn’t back down. They were going to take advantage of every opportunity in the second half, and they did.
“It shows we have heart,” Steinbock said. “The past four games, we’ve taken the lead and lost it – just like the first half of this game. It shows we still believe in ourselves, have heart and we can come back and stay strong through the entire second half.
“It did come for us today – we were due. No one likes losing. We hate that. But as soon as the ref blows the whistle at the end of the game, the loss is over. The same as this win. We’re not going to let things get to us and alter our season negatively. A bounce here and there and a couple of games could have gone our way.”
“To score five goals against one of the best teams in South Jersey is a tribute to our defense, our set up and the counter-attacking strategy we tried to follow,” Moehlmann said.
“We’ve had our problems with injuries, goalie problems and defensive breakdowns. If you asked me at halftime if they would score, I would have said most likely yes. They didn’t and we did. Psychologically, maybe they thought the same thing. They were pressing forward and got caught on our counter attack.”
Follow Kevin Minnick on Twitter at @varsityinsider
