It might be the Golden Days for Norwich Tech boys soccer

NORWICH - You can make a case that these are the Golden Days of Norwich Tech boys soccer.

The Warriors beat Wheeler, 1-0, in Norwich on Wednesday to complete their third shutout win over an Eastern Connecticut Conference team. The Warriors also boast 1-0 wins over Griswold and Killingly.

Norwich Tech improved to 6-0-1, a fast start that continues a strong recent stretch: a 9-7-2 mark and first CIAC tournament win in over 10 years in 2021 and a 10-5-2 record and a Connecticut Technical Conference division championship in 2022.

"My whole goal in this program is to bring it to a level where we gain respect from an ECC team when we play them," Norwich Tech coach Jamie Lamitie said.

This is Lamitie’s 11th season at the helm.

"We've built a culture of dedication to soccer,” Lamitie said. “In early years, we'd struggle to see five players playing in indoor leagues or in summer 7 versus 7 games. Now, we get 20 participating."

Norwich Tech scored six minutes into the game when Tyler Barry sent a pass from the flank to Roman McElwee, who knocked in the goal past Wheeler goalkeeper Johnny Anderson.

The Warriors proceeded to hold off a hard-charging Lions attack, especially in the second half when Wheeler forced three corner kicks. Wheeler was 4-1 coming into this week before falling to St. Bernard, 3-1, on Tuesday and Norwich Tech the following day.

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"We know (Wheeler) very well," Lamitie said. "Their coach Joe Mendonca and I co-coach a club team in the winter with the top players on each of our squads. We knew they had a dangerous striker in Harrison Avery. Our fullback Hunter Jackson did a nice job marking him and limiting his touches."

Avery is a remarkable story. He suffered a gruesome dirt-bike injury four years ago, resulting in surgery which amputated nearly half of his left foot. He came back a year later to score four goals as a Wheeler sophomore in 2021 before not playing a year ago. He returned to the squad as a senior this year and leads Wheeler with five goals.

"I knew Avery is quicker than me, so I tried to beat him to the spot he wanted," Jackson said. "We contained him pretty well. It's a great feeling to beat an ECC team because as a tech-school we're often underestimated."

With about 10 minutes left, Jackson aggravated a leg injury, forcing Lamatie to move Tyler Barry from midfielder to center back. Barry, who assisted on Tech's score, added perhaps the biggest assist of his career late in the game.

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With Warrior goalie Landon O'Brien out of position trying to beat a Wheeler forward to the ball 20 yards away from the goal, Barry, parked eight yards in front of the goal, made a chest save on a 12-yard shot in the middle of the field with 7:30 remaining to preserve the victory.

"I played goalkeeper in youth soccer when I was about 10," Barry said. "I never had as big a save as this one, considering it was a game-determining play and as a field player you can't use your hands. That save means more to me than the assist because I'm sure the ball would have gone in the net if I wasn't there."

Lamitie thought last year's championship squad could have ranked as the pinnacle of his career.

"We had five senior All-CTC Charter Oak Division players," he said. "I had some quality players back in Barry and midfielder Michael George, our captains, but we had holes to fill."

Lamitie welcomed 11 freshmen into the program this year, which, "is a lot for us,’ he said. Some of the newcomers, specifically midfielder Yariel Enciso, are getting into the mix and contributing.

The collection of holdovers and newcomers have blended into another CTC Charter Oak contender this fall and a team that ECC squads can't pencil in as a victory any more.

"The challenge will be to stay healthy," Lamitie said. "If we do, we hope to bring home another banner and scare some teams, if not advance, in the state tournament."

This article originally appeared on The Bulletin: Norwich Tech boys soccer off to fast start