Gardiner boys soccer tops Cony in torrential downpour

Gardiner’s Carter Malloy left, plays defense on Cony’s Carter Fleischer during the Tigers’ 2-1 win on Thursday in Gardiner. (Joe Phelan/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image

GARDINER — With rain coming down sideways, and his team down a man and in need of a goal, Grayson Greenleaf came through for the Gardiner boys soccer team.

Greenleaf’s goal with 8 minutes, 47 seconds left Thursday gave Gardiner a 2-1 victory over rival Cony at Hoch Field. The sophomore headed in a free kick swung in by Logan Cote, who earlier put the Tigers ahead with a goal of his own.

“It’s a rivalry game, and our kids really wanted it,” said Gardiner coach B.J. Parkin. “It’s tough when you go a man down and also have to adapt to the weather, so it’s a nice win for us.”

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The conditions forced both teams to adjust in the first half. The rain did not let up for the entire game, and the wet conditions on the fast Hoch Field turf made the ball’s trajectory tough to predict.

“You couldn’t see sometimes with the water getting in your eyes, so you really had to stay focused,” Greenleaf said. “When we played the ball in the air, it would skip, so we had to try and play it on the ground.”

• Following an uneventful first half, Cote scored the opening goal for Gardiner (6-2) with 36:29 to go. Three minutes later, the Tigers conceded a penalty, which Cony’s Carter Fleischer slotted into the bottom-right corner to tie the game.

• Despite Raef Alves being sent off for a second yellow card, Gardiner still managed to pressure the Cony goal. Filip Graham kept the score level with two excellent saves but could not stop Greenleaf’s well-placed header.

“We practiced that a lot in practice,” Greenleaf said. “When I saw where the ball was going, I knew I had to redirect it.”

WHAT IT MEANS

• Despite losing the majority of last year’s team to graduation, Gardiner is again a factor in Class B North. The Tigers are 6-0 against B North foes, with their two losses coming to Leavitt and Morse of Class B South.

“Our juniors (from last season) have stepped up as seniors,” Parkin said. “We’ve had an exchange student (Abderrahmen Mathlouhi Rahili) come in and really make a difference for us, and even though he’s out for a few weeks with an injury, it’s still good leadership.”