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Restart fools Army; Falcons win in OT
COLORADO SPRINGS — Altitude can be an advantage for Colorado sports teams, but the way they exploit it can differ. Air Force co-captain Kevin Rosser used a quick restart to feed Zane Dydasco for the winning goal in overtime as the Falcons defeated Army 1-0 on Saturday night at Cadet Soccer Stadium.
In the third minute of OT, Army gave up a free kick a few feet outside its penalty box. Rosser immediately tapped the ball forward to Dydasco, and the play caught Army with its hands on its hips. Dydasco, who easily got behind the defense because of the head’s-up play, fired a low shot to beat goalkeeper Nick Alexander.
“It was a quick start, just poked it through, got through about the 12 on the outside, slotted
back post. It was just a quick restart before they were ready,” Dydasco said. “That’s something
we try to look for a lot because generally (our) team is in good shape. Keeping them on their heels is a good thing for us.”
The Black Knights had been on their heels
since the 25th minute, when senior forward
Bryan Connolly received a red card after a hard foul, leaving his team to play with 10 men the
rest of the way.
“We were looking for it because we could tell that Army was getting tired, especially with them playing down, 10 players the whole game pretty much,” Dydasco said. “It’s a (testament) to them, too, because they stuck with us. They gave us a run for our money with 10 players. We were looking for that quick start because they were just dying, especially at this altitude.”
But even when each team had its full complement of players, the Falcons were trying to push the tempo with quick restarts.
“People always take a break when the whistle blows,” Air Force coach Doug Hill said. “If we don’t ask for 10 yards, the rule states that you can play it quick. If you ask for 10, you have to wait for the whistle.”
And when that whistle blew in overtime, Army needed a breather. The Knights had been under attack nearly the whole game. Air Force had outshot them 11-2 in the second half, and the hosts had served up 14 corner kicks to Army’s two.
Air Force attacked with zeal for the first 20 minutes, generating multiple scoring chances from a variety of angles, before the pace slowed down. Then, after the ejection, the pace picked up again.
The Falcons played nearly the whole second half in the Army half of the field and switched their strategy to attacking more from the wings. Most of the offense started in the right corner and consisted of crossing the ball into the box.
“They went to a 4-3-2 system, which lets our outside backs penetrate a lot more,” Hill said. “In our halftime speech, they’re down a man, let’s attack to the sides. They’re gonna be free,” Hill said.
But it wasn’t working. The wings often couldn’t find the right arc. And when they did, the forwards couldn’t get on top of the ball.
Hill said part of the problem was the opponent, another service academy. Because they were playing Army, he said, the Falcons may have been a little overzealous at the beginning of the game and perhaps too anxious to wrap things up at the end.
“It’s a high-energy game, and sometimes this places more emotion in the soccer,” Hill said. “Guys, when you play inner service, they have a little extra energy and they’re overstriking the ball. You saw a lot that were going over the crossbar; 90 percent of those are usually a little lower. We couldn’t put it away earlier.”
Air Force improved to 3-1-1 this season, and Army fell to 1-6.
MAN OF THE MATCH: The goal scorer in a 1-0 match gets automatic consideration, especially when it’s a golden goal. But I’m not going with Dydasco. Army’s goalkeeper was under pressure the entire match and made more of an impact on the game for a longer period than any other player. Ten minutes in, Alexander, a senior from Maryland, came off his line to thwart and Air Force attack with a huge punch. About five minutes later, Air Force striker Steven Noller created space for a shot with a series of stepover moves that the defense couldn’t keep up with; Alexander made a diving save to deny the senior. With seven minutes to play before halftime, Alexander made another diving stop, this time on a shot by John Melcher. The second half he stayed busy with the aerial attacks from the sides, but he stood out again with a scooping save on a blast by Kevin Durr. Alexander was a big reason the game went to overtime in the first place; in fact, he was largely responsible for Air Force not taking the lead in the first 20 minutes. He gets my vote.
BEST HOME-FIELD ADVANTAGE: Forget the altitude. The gantlet of loudmouths behind the visitors’ goal are something the visiting goalkeeper must deal with. Alexander, whose jersey number happens to be 00, was forced to endure a barrage of insults. Alexander was the target because he’s closest to the fence and, as goalkeeper, he basically stays in one place. The taunting was merciless: “Hey, Nick, why do you have two zeros?” “Hey, Nick, why did they make the shortest guy on the field the goalkeeper?” “Hey, Nick, you should kick it farther.” “Hey, Nick, were three zeros not available?” “Did they run out of zeros?” “Hey, Nick, you’re an army of one!” And on and on. Not an easy atmosphere to play in.
BEST PREGAME SPECTACLE: A parachute demonstration that started in midair and ended at midfield.
CAN YOU CALL IT A SELLOUT IF IT’S FREE TO GET IN? The west stands were packed, and nearly all of the east bleachers were filled for this match against Army. The academy listed the attendance as 2,132. And where did Dydasco head right after he scored his goal? Straight to the fans in the west bleachers. Hill said he’d like to play the Black Knights and Navy every year, but it just doesn’t happen. “We were back there two years ago, and then they returned the trip. Navy will be back here in two years,” Hill said. “The problem is Army and Navy are in the same league.” And Air Force is way out here in the Rocky Mountains.
PICTURED ABOVE: Air Force co-captain Josh Rhynard chases down a ball on the left wing in the first half. (photo by George Tanner/ColoradoSoccerNow.com)
WHAT’S NEXT? The Falcons head on the road for four straight games, beginning with Stanford on Friday night.
ARMY STARTERS: Nick Alexander, Jeffrey Pickett, Bryan Connolly, Jonathan Brege, Cole Dietz, Andrew Kydes, Sean Kim, Carson McReynolds, Trent Brown, John Moon, Michael Kim.
AIR FORCE STARTERS: Jim Gullo, Eric Tise, John Tilton, Aaron Eshkenazi, Eric Wilson, Kyle Moses, Josh Rhynard, Zane Dydasco, Kevin Rosser, Kevin Durr, Steven Noller.
George Tanner is a former writer and editor for the Rocky Mountain News; the Greeley Tribune; The Daily Independent of Ridgecrest, Calif.; the Durango Herald; and the Boulder Daily Camera. He is a graduate of the University of Colorado and an affiliate professor at Metropolitan State College of Denver. E-mail him at ColoradoSoccerNow@gmail.com.
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