The Bulldogs opened their season with a crushing 5-1 victory over Sidwell Friends Sept. 7, defeated Good Counsel, 2-1, Sept. 10 and lost to WJ, 2-0, Sept. 20. Fans hope that these first couple of games will be the beginning of a successful season after a shaky 4-9 record last year.
For the first 20 minutes in the game against WJ, CHS had strong possession of the ball, but because of defensive errors and two consecutive fouls just outside the penalty box, the opposing team was able to score twice. During the second half, the Bulldogs had some great attacking plays but unfortunately fell short as none of the shots could find the back of the net.
“We need to be more patient and disciplined within our game plan,” coach Arnold Tarzy said. “When we have opportunities to shoot we need to take them early and be more accurate.”
The game against Good Counsel proved to be an intense comeback as the opposing team dominated during the first half, and scored in the beginning of the second half. Junior Dylan Regan scored a goal tying up the game in the middle of the second half. Then with just 20 seconds left the Bulldogs were able to score another goal to win the game.
“We did pretty well,” junior Jack Butler said. “[Good Counsel was not] great, but Dylan stepped up big at the end.”
For the first 30 minutes of the season’s opening game, Sidwell quickly won possession of the ball and scored, but eventually the Bulldogs were able to get past Sidwell’s defense and score their first goal. From then on, CHS was unstoppable, bombarding the opposing team with four more goals.
“We attacked and attacked and finally broke down Sidwell’s defense and found the back of the net,” junior Bofan Wu said. “We switched the formation up during our game and that [gave] us a spark offensively, leading to five goals.”
In the playoffs last fall, CHS suffered a devastating loss to Blair, 1-0, in the nail biting first round. After losing seven seniors, incoming players have big shoes to fill, and seem to be meeting expectations notably so far.
“We have tremendous leadership,” Tarzy said. “We have a lot to count on in terms of players who are returning, and young players who didn’t play last year that are on the squad now and doing a great job.”
Last year, the team’s main weakness was putting the ball in the back of the net, but, this year, teammates fear that it will be keeping their players attached and aware of one another on the field.
“We just need to take more shots,” junior Eric Ossola said. “[Also we need to] keep our midfield connected to our forwards and backs.”
Their struggles seem minimized by their strong skills in techniques such as passing and possession of the ball. By using this to their advantage, the Bulldogs are able to frustrate their opponents and keep them away from their goal.
“When we [find] an opening we [take] it and look for chances to score,” Wu said. “Our defense also [does] a great job of keeping our opponents away from our goal, limiting them to only a few shots.”
