Tappan Zee has established itself as the best team in Class A over the first seven games
ORANGEBURG – Tappan Zee is the clear favorite in Class A this season.
Officially.
The Dutchmen put an exclamation point on a strong stretch to open the season Tuesday, posting a 3-0 win over a Rye team that hung around long enough to create some real drama.
“It was important to see how we’d perform against a team that could play up to our standard,” said Brady Jacobs, who finally broke through a stubborn Garnets defense late in the second half. “I think we were tested, and I think we did well.”
Yep.
“We’re not too worried about whether or not we’re the favorite,” Tappan Zee forward Jack Kryger said. “We’re going to go after it. We’ve got something to prove to everyone.”
The Dutchmen never looked vulnerable, but there were stretches where Rye was on the verge of stealing the moment.
“Everybody has games like that, but the mark of a great team is getting it done even on those nights where you’re not at your best,” Kryger said. “When you miss chance after chance you have to keep getting after it and trust in your teammates to get it done.”
A little extra hustle never hurts, either.
Kryger pulled a fast one with a quick restart on a free kick. Jacobs controlled the ball, turned and scored with 17:25 to play in the game.
Rye clearly felt the sting.
“The second I saw his hand on the ball and his head up, I knew what was going to happen,” Jacobs said.
Jacobs added insurance, converting a penalty kick four minutes later. Antonio Mazzola closed out the scoring with 11:35 to play.
“There’s a lot to build off,” said Rye forward Tommy Broderick, one of only two starters back from a team that Tappan Zee sent home in a Section 1 Class A tournament semifinal with an overtime win. “It was the first time we fell behind this season and I think we reacted OK, but then giving up a penalty kick didn’t feel right. It didn’t go well after that, so we have to pick it up.”
What it means
Scoring on the Dutchmen this season will require patience and perseverance. A fortunate bounce might prove helpful, too.
“The attacking players get a lot of attention, deservedly so, but our team defending has probably been the untold story,” Tappan Zee coach Jon Jacobs said. “We’ve given up four goals in seven games, two on penalty kicks and two own goals, so we’ve not conceded a goal in the run of play. We’ve played Yorktown, Lakeland, Rye, Panas, some of the best teams in Section 1 and the numbers speak for themselves.”
Player of the game
Jack Murphy is the heart and soul of the defense, which had to deliver when the Garnets began to string quality possessions together.
By the numbers
Rye (3-1): Max Crothall came up with eight saves, a number of which belong on the highlight reel.
Tappan Zee (7-0): Oliver Sciorra redirected the ball to Mazzola for the final assist. … Nico Waldhauser made four saves.
They said it
“We were just in it together,” Brady said. “The team, me and JK, I feel the bond between us is so strong we can push each other through tension. Our team is good at handling that. … We’re very confident. I don’t think we’ve had a team like this before where we know what we have and we’re ready to show everyone.”
“(Losing in the Section 1 final last year) fuels us a lot,” Kryger said. “We still have our seniors from last year texting us after every game, ‘Good win.’ It’s amazing, our program, everyone is all together. Nobody ever leaves. That gives you motivation to know everyone is behind you, everyone is rooting for you from our TZ family.”
Mike Dougherty covers boys soccer for The Journal News and lohud.com. Follow along @hoopsmbd.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Tappan Zee beat Rye in boys soccer 3-0 on Sept. 19, 2023
