Winchester edges Belmont, heads to boys soccer North final

LYNN — During Middlesex League play, Winchester and Belmont’s boys soccer teams traded shutout victories.

Their third meeting, in the MIAA Division 2 North semifinals, was also a shutout, with Winchester prevailing 1-0 on Wednesday at Manning Field.

Winchester will play Concord-Carlisle or Wakefield in the North final Sunday at 3:30 p.m. at Manning Field.

Junior Idman Hodzic scored the winning goal in the 68th minute, knocking in a rebound off an initial shot from Dylan Ross.

“It was a hard-fought game,” Hodzic said. “I had to not panic, stay composed and finish.”

Said Winchester coach Vin Musto, “In the second half, we got more shots on frame. It was not an easy rebound, there was a lot of traffic in front of the net. We work a lot on finishing halves and games.”

The Sachems (13-4-5) had a chance to add to their lead in the final two minutes when they were awarded a penalty kick. Belmont goalie Andrew Steisel made the save with his feet off Ben Von Hale.

Belmont (12-5-2) had two good chances in the first half but Will Hoerle’s shot in the 10th minute was saved by Niki Menounos and Ali Nourouzi’s line drive in the 17th minute went high.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/2rAEZDt