As much of a rollercoaster of a season it has been for the Crestwood Red Devils boys’ soccer team, they still know how to come through in the clutch. The Red Devils pulled away from Newton Falls late in the second half to win 4-2 last Saturday afternoon at Jack Lambert Stadium in Mantua.
“We have to have every match,” said Coach Eric Sway. “We don’t ever want to lose. We don’t come out to lose, we come out to play and come out to win. This was a big win that we pulled out that we definitely needed.”
Despite building a 2-1 lead in the first half, the Red Devils’ (6-3-0, 1-1-0) lead quickly evaporated in the second half when Newton Falls’ sophomore Brody Lampman chased down a loose ball in transition and buried the equalizer in the 42nd minute of play, knotting the score at 2-2.
Although Crestwood’s early 2-0 advantage was no more, the fourth-year coach said that prevailing in tightly contested matches had been something his squad had excelled in over the last few years. In the last two seasons, the Red Devils had recorded a 10-3 record in matches decided by two goals or less.
“In close games and tie games we will pull it out,” he added. “We have the right coaching and the right style to pull those games out. I think we are very experienced. I was not crazy on Saturday, but I was confident that we were going to come back.”
Newton Falls was not afraid to get physical with the Red Devils but according to senior striker Elijah Jurisch, the Tigers were mistaken if they thought Crestwood would unravel against some aggressive play.
“That’s our DNA,” he said. “We have come through a lot of adversity throughout my four years here from my sophomore year when we were almost not a team to now being over 20 guys. In my sophomore and junior years, we had to have that physical style. Now that we have that physical style, it is boosting our game.”
Through the first 15 minutes in the second half, Crestwood failed to record a shot on goal and struggled to pressure the Newton Falls’ defensive third.
According to Jurisch, the Tigers had done a nice job of aligning their back line. He said that Crestwood needed to make perfect passes to push the ball through but their timing had been off throughout most of the match.
In the 62nd minute of regulation, the Red Devils’ senior and leading scorer of the Chagrin Valley Conference Valley Division used his head to help his team assume control.
Jurisch chased down a free kick off of the foot of junior striker Kyle Shelhammer and headed the ball in over the Newton Falls’ goalkeeper from the middle of the box, giving Crestwood a 3-2 advantage.
“It was an in-game moment,” he said. “I was like I see the keeper is coming out and have to use my head here. It was my best shot at scoring this. I have seen a lot of games on television when they have had headers from the 18-yard line so I was like I am going to try this out and see how it goes.”
The Red Devils maintained their lead and added an insurance goal near the end of the match when Shelhammer was fouled by two Newton Falls players near the goal, awarding the Red Devils a penalty kick.
Jurisch, who had already scored Crestwood’s three goals including a penalty kick in the first half, scored on the second penalty kick inside the 78th minute of play, pushing the lead to 4-2, finishing the match four goals.
“Elijah is that kid and player that every coach and player wishes was on their team,” Sway said. “I am fortunate that he is on our team. I am sure I will be watching him long into his college career. He is definitely the heart and soul of the team.”
After a brief two-game losing skid where the Red Devils’ were outscored by an 11-1 margin, they have rebounded by winning their last two by scoring nine goals over that span.
Following a road match against CVC Valley Division rival Berkshire on Tuesday evening and a home match against Akron Firestone on Thursday night, Crestwood will return to the pitch to face conference foe Kirtland at home on Sep. 24 beginning at 5 p.m. in Mentor.
