New Canaan U9 Boys Red Soccer Team Victorious Again!

On Sunday, New Canaan's U9 Boys Red became the team to beat, overcoming a two goal deficit to upset the also-undefeated Old Greenwich Thunder in a 4-2 win. Old Greenwich surged ahead early, scoring two goals in the first ten minutes, but the New Canaan boys were not flustered and were backed by the confidence of Coach Chris Gilligan, whose practices repeatedly drilled the passing and positioning skills that the team would need for this game. The day's appointed defensemen, including Jaden Oyekanmi, Cole Wilson, Max Lowe, Ted Werner and goalkeeper Teddy Balkind, were especially tireless and unbeatable for the rest of the game. With the score at 0-2, New Canaan's Connor Lytle, pursued closely by an equally quick Old Greenwich player, raced down the field at top speed and perfectly timed his shot into the back of the net to bring the score to 1-2. Impressively, he repeated the feat several minutes later, which tied the game just before the half. In the second half, the New Canaan defense was a steel wall to a fading Old Greenwich and New Canaan's offense, including Augusto Baldini, Ben Bilden, Jack Cuda, Felipe Galavis, Teddy Hoffstein, Will Langford, and Ethan Schubert, had the opportunity to aggressively attack the goal, getting several close shots. Finally, Felipe Galavis created an opening and kicked the goal that brought New Canaan into the lead for the first time in the game. The boys gave it everything they had to hold on to their lead, sprinting after every ball and taking every possible shot. Then, with five minutes left in the game, Connor Lytle scored the insurance goal, his third goal in the game. After the game, Coach Gilligan commended each player for working hard and doing his part against their most competitive opponent yet.

Photo credit: Front row: Connor Lytle, Henry Silva. Next Row: Augusto Baldini, Jack Cudo. Next row: Ben Bilden, Felipe Galavis. Rest of team from left to right: Will Langford, Teddy Hoffstein, Ted Werner, Teddy Balkind, Max Lowe, Cole Wilson, Jaden Oyekanmi, Ethan Schubert and Coach Chris Gilligan.