West back on track, tops Sanborn, 3-1

MANCHESTER, NH — After spotting Sanborn an early lead, Manchester West roared back for a 3-1 win, Tuesday evening at Maisel Veterans Field.

Japhari Ramadani and Zack Schleyer had goals for the Blue Knights, who also benefitted from a Sanborn “own goal.”

West (7-2-3) won for the first time since Sept. 26, moving into seventh place in the D-III standings. The Blue Knights were coming off a 4-1 loss to unbeaten Hopkinton and a disappointing 1-1 tie against Kearsage.

”We have young players and have to work on the mental, physical and emotional parts of the game,” said West Head Coach Fernando Martinez. “When we have a rough game, we come back (in practice) and work on the mistakes and try to get better.”

One lesson Martinez has drilled into his players is to have very short memories. Whether it’s game-to-game, half-to-half or play-to-play, Martinez reminds his players to forget what just happened and look ahead to the next opportunity.

With that in mind, West players didn’t get frustrated or lose when Sanborn (3-7-3) came out firing on all cylinders and caught the Blue Knights off guard with an early goal. Senior Captain Caleb Lesicka converted a feed from Aiden Daniel to give the visitors a 1-0 lead.

Sanborn tried to take advantage of the momentum but were turned away by some solid play from West’s back line.

It took the Blue Knights a little while to gain their footing, but once they did, they took control of the midfield and kept Sanborn back on its heels.

West’s relentless pressure paid off in the 25th minute with a goal to tie the score. Ramadani and Israel Ebenezer led the attack, eventually working the ball to Supporte Mkunji in front of net.

As Mkunji looked to get off a shot, Sanborn fullback Spencer Lamirande got a foot on the ball to try and clear but the ball went off the side of his foot and over the head of keeper Collin Mahoney for an “own goal” and a 1-1 tie.

Less than two minutes later, West struck again to take the lead. This time it was Ramadani powering his way through defenders on a rush down the left side. He cut in from the corner and ripped a shot at a tough angle that beat Mahoney to the short side.

Despite the loss, Mahoney played a strong game in net for Sanborn, finishing with 11 saves. Mahoney kept his team close with a handful of outstanding stops, including one with his face when he charged out to meet Ebenezer on a clean break.

West freshman keeper Aiden Agrusso didn’t have to make many stops in the second half but he did make a couple of gems, including a diving save on a blast from 20 yards by Caden Pike to preserve the slim lead.

“He’s just a freshman but he works hard in practice and that’s the hardest part,” said Martinez. “He works hard in practice and I tell him that whatever’s going to happen will happen, just go out and enjoy the game.”

West was finally able to notch an insurance goal in the 78th minute, thanks to some terrific ball movement. No fewer than five Knights touched the ball in the attack zone before Ebenezer centered to Schleyer, who beat Mahoney cleanly to make it 3-1.

West has just four games remaining on its regular season schedule. The Blue Knights are off until Oct. 15, when they play host to winless Inter-Lakes at 6 pm.