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Williams College

Home of the Williams College EPHS
1920 Connor Huleatt
Maya Singh
0
Union (N.Y.) UNION (N (2-4-1, 0-0-0)
2
Winner Williams WILLIAMS (3-2-0, 1-2-0)
Union (N.Y.) UNION (N
(2-4-1, 0-0-0)
0
Final
2
Williams WILLIAMS
(3-2-0, 1-2-0)
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 F
Union (N.Y.) UNION (N 0 0 0
Williams WILLIAMS 1 1 2

Game Recap: Men's Soccer |

Williams Downs Union 2-0 at Home

Williamstown, Mass – It was the first years that were decisive today in the Williams College Ephs' (3-2-0) 2-0 win over the Union College Garnet Chargers (2-4-1). First, it was red-hot Alex Bethencourt who, in the 38th minute,  notched his third goal of the season off a good touch pass from first-year Ben Brown. And then, in the 57th minute, it was first-year debut goalkeeper Kai Darrell who launched a beautiful ball from deep in the Williams half to connect with the head of Griffin Labonski, who shifted his body well to head home the dagger. 

Union looked dangerous in the first 10 minutes of the match, finding success in possession in the middle and two-man overloads in the channels. Williams, however, gradually started to take control of the game. As the half went on, the Ephs adjusted well to the lack of a Union press, won more 50/50 balls, progressed the ball through the lines effectively, and began picking apart the Union defense, individually and through combination play. If it hadn't been for Union Goalkeeper Jackson Magee, who stood on his head, the first 45 minutes the game could have ended 3-0 for Williams. 

Despite Williams's eventual dominance,  Union had chances early. In the 5th minute, a shot from Union attacker Alex Vittal from outside the box off a corner kick was deflected and forced senior goalkeeper Ben Diffley to get low quickly on his left post to make the save. 

In the 7th minute, Garnet Charger Alex Borkland fired a slow, bending ball to the left side of the goal, which 6 ft, 5 in Ben Diffley nabbed out of the air.  While Diffley was never seriously tested, it's worth mentioning his impressive aerial dominance in the box throughout the whole first half.  

The Ephs engine started rolling when senior Dylan Kelemen took a good touch off a deep long-ball from senior Felipe Gutierrez. Keleman turned and shot, forcing a save from Union keeper Jackson Magee. 

The momentum really started to mount in the 24th minute when senior Tate Michelson made himself some space on the left side of the box and fired a rising shot that forced a fully stretched, diving save from Union keeper Jackson Magee. Williams got close to putting the rebound away, but the Garnet Charger's defense was able to clear the ball out of danger and repel the attack. 

Only a minute later,  junior Henry Kirkman almost found the back of the net after Jackson Magee bobbled what should have been an easy catch. The mistake gave Kirkman a good look at goal, but Union did well to block it.  

In the 34th minute, the Ephs dominance continued to show when sophomore defender Leon Ma bodied Union right midfielder Lucas Montlato while he was running up the wing and won a goal kick in a play that 9/10 times would have resulted in a corner kick. While this play might seem trivial, it boosted the Ephs' confidence, which helped them keep their foot on the gas. 


In the 39th minute, the pressure proved too much for the Garnet Chargers.  After a series of box entering aerial passes, Ben Brown got the ball in the right side of the box and, with a touch flick pass, hit it to Alex Bethencourt, who acrobatically buried the ball into the back of the net to give Williams the 1-0 lead over Union

Only minutes later,  Bethencourt nearly had his second brace of the season when he took another dangerous shot in the box forcing a beautiful, full-body save. Off a rebounded ball back into the box,  Amherst hero Lorcan Mitchell forced another great save from Union keeper with his shot on the right side of the box. The whistle could not have been blown sooner for the shell shocked Garnet Chargers.  


The second half started the way the first half ended, with immediate Williams pressure that Union just couldn't seem to deal with. 

It all came to a head for the Ephs when they earned a free kick deep in their half in the 57th minute. Halftime sub goalkeeper Kai Darrell was tasked with taking it and hit it deep into the danger zone. Eph centerback, Griffin Labonski, shifted his weight and lost his marker. With the space he created for himself, he took a couple of steps and connected the side of his head to the ball, which whizzed by keeper Jackson Magee, doubling Williams' lead to 2-0. 

Union wasn't completely dead yet, especially in transition moments. In the 59th minute, a Garnet Charger counter-attack saw Union midfielder Diego Pascual run into acres of space on the right wing. He got a shot off, but it sailed over the top left corner of Darrell's net. 

Williams almost made it three when, in the 65th minute, senior Keel Brissett bicycle kicked a miss-hit cross perfectly to the feet of sophomore Jeff Stauffer, who was occupying the right side of the box. Stauffer, forced to act quickly, sent the ball flying over the bar. 

In the game's last minutes, Williams kept the pressure on but also didn't let up defensively. No play illustrated this better than when, in the 81st minute,  sophomore Kellan Grace whipped in a good free kick that was delt with well by the Union defense who were quickly able to send one of their wingers on the break with a ton of space. Instead of giving up, Grace tracked back with everything he had and put in a great tackle to win the ball back and stop a dangerous Union attack in transition. That type of end-to-end fight helped Williams keep the shutout and eventually win the match 2-0. 

Eph head coach Steffen Siebert gave his thoughts on his side's performance: 
"Very good team performance against a well-organized Union team. We looked very dangerous on the ball when playing between Union's lines and created many high-quality scoring opportunities through some excellent combination play. Excited to get another win on Cole before going on the road this weekend for a conference match-up with Trinity."  

The Ephs will play away at Trinity on Saturday, September 21, at 3 PM.
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