Westport soccer teams fall in round of 16
Wildcats fall to Brighton 1-0 in PKS Girls lose to Douglas 9-0
Story and photos by Richard W. Dionne , Jr.
Posted 11/12/24
Somber seniors wept and hugged teammates and coaches after the Wildcats lost to Brighton 1-0 in …
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Westport soccer teams fall in round of 16
Wildcats fall to Brighton 1-0 in PKS Girls lose to Douglas 9-0
Coach Chris Parker (left) looks on as senior teammates Travis Carvalho and Noah Amaral console each other after the loss.
Photos by Rich Dionne
Head coach Chris Parker (right) consoles senior Zach Lopes with Ben Cross (left), Garrett Skov, Carter Couto, Henry Gillet and Austin Raposo after the team lost to Brighton 1-0 in Pks in the round of 16 on Saturday.
Photos by Rich Dionne
Striker Will Quinlan strides with a defender to blast a shot on goal.
Travis Carvalho puts his head on a goal kick.
Carter Couto makes a pass over a pair of defenders.
Will Quinlan reacts after missing the goal with a header from a direct kick.
Goalkeeper Noah Amaral punches the ball out during a corner kick.
Nyzaiah Pacheco blasts a shot on goal during the game.
Goalkeeper Noah Amaral (left) encourages Will Quinlan before he takes a penalty kick.
Posted
Somber seniors wept and hugged teammates and coaches after the Wildcats lost to Brighton 1-0 in penalty kicks during the Division 5 round of 16 at home on Saturday afternoon.
Westport outshot and out played their Brighton opponents, but ultimately couldn’t kick or head the ball into the goal. The two teams battled to a 0-0 tie in regulation and again, through two ten-minute overtime periods.
The crowd full of students, family, friends and alumni looked on in nervous anticipation and eventually horror as the Wildcats finally succumbed, 3-2 during penalty kicks.
“It was crushing,” head coach Chris Parker said to the team after the loss. “We showed up for 100 minutes and had them on the ropes. But the soccer gods weren’t with us this year. I’ll never forget The way you rose together do incredible things and have a great season. Take pride in what you’ve accomplished.”
Seniors: goalkeeper Noah Amaral, striker Will Quinlan, Travis Carvalho, Ben Cross, Jake Cross, Max Gallant, Henry Gillet, Finnegan Hall, Zach Lopes, and Nyzaiah Pacheco all played in their last high school soccer game.
“This group have been together since seven years old. They are very, very close,” Coach Parker said.
Will Quinlan and Carter Couto scored penalty kicks for Westport in the loss.
“This is so hard to take, because I truly believed that this crew was going to do it,” Coach Parker said. “Once we got on that role, I knew they were capable of doing it.”
Pacheco took the last kick for Westport and sunk to the ground when Brighton keeper Albert Carvalho made the final save. The outside midfielder scored the game winner to give Westport their first ever Division 5 state title last season, a 1-0 victory over Douglas in penalty kicks.
He found himself in a similar position against Brighton, but he couldn’t deliver and keep the Wildcats’ season alive.
“We hovered around and we just couldn’t get one in,” Coach Parker said.
Mayflower champs
Westport ended their season with a record of 13-3-4. They won the Mayflower Comprehensive Division championship with a league record of 7-1. They won 7 of 8 games and scored 28 goals, since losing to Atlantis Charter School on Oct. 8.
“I’ve grown so close to these guys,” Coach Parker said. “We were together for offseason workouts and then the summer league. We spent a lot of time together the last six months and it's a kick in the gut.”
“There’s a thousand different variables that play into a rise to the top like that. And one of them is luck,” he said.
The Westport girls fall to first seeded Douglas 9-0
The Westport girls team lost to first seeded Douglas 9-0 during a round of 16 away game on Saturday night.
“They are an all-around team,” said head coach Gary Muello. “They are number one for many good reasons.”
“Our girls played the best they could,” he said. “Douglas was the better team.
Boys' and Girls' teams victorious in round of 32
Will Quinlan scored two goals for Westport as the boys shutout Hull 3-0 in a home game on Wednesday afternoon. The senior captain, used his head to score both goals. He timed a beautifully placed, direct kick by senior midfielder Zach Lopes. Quinlan beat his man, got his head on the ball and directed it by Hull goalkeeper Ed Hipp into the goal for a Westport 2-0 lead midway through the first half.
"We capitalized on two wonderfully delivered balls and big Will was there to get his head on them,” said Coach Parker.
He scored his second header minutes later, timing a Nyzaiah Pacheco corner kick to the back post of the goal, for a Wildcats 3-0 lead.
Central midfielder Travis Carvalho, a senior, is finally back after fracturing his wrist in the first game of the season. He beat Hipp during a penalty kick to give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead in the first half after they were awarded the kick due to a Hull hand ball in the box.
“He started practicing two days ago,” Coach Parker said. “He’s a senior. I’m obviously going to start him. I just didn’t know how long he could go before he was gassed. But the kid played tremendously well.”
Amaral records eighth shut out
Senior goalkeeper Noah Amaral made 5 saves to earn his eighth shutout of the season. He had defensive help from his back line Garrett Skov, Ben Cross, Jake Cross, Zachary Lopes and Henry Gillet.
Girls beat Nashoba Valley 3-2 in the round of 32.
The Wildcats came back twice to beat 16th seeded Nashoba Valley in penalty kicks during an away game in the Division 5 round of 32 on Monday. The Wildcats tied the game twice during regulation. The two teams played two scoreless ten-minute overtime periods before deciding the game with penalty kicks.
Ella Camara, Lily Veracka and Adalyn Reynolds scored goals for Westport and still the game was tied after each team took five kicks. Sophomore goalkeeper Morgan Pacheco made the save on Nashoba Valley’s sixth kick. The sophomore made 3 saves during the PKs and 8 saves during regulation.
Seventh grade forward Sophia Baab took the sixth penalty kick and scored the game winning goal for the Wildcats.
“It was a stunning finish,” said Westport head coach Gary Muello. “Pure joy. A great memory for the girls. Morgan had a standout performance in goal. She made huge saves.”
Tied 2-2 after regulation
Adalyn Reynolds kicked in a pass from Lily Veracka to score Westports’ first goal and knot the score at 1-1. Later in the game, Veracka evened the score again at 2-2.
“It was a jaw dropping shot,” Coach Muello said of Veracka’s goal. It was a crucial goal. A tremendous shot into the netting.”
Coach Muello commended the Wildcats defensive play. Especially senior captains Julia George and Tess Silvia.
“They did a terrific job slowing down Nashoba’s attack.”
