Heating up

There's just something special about tournament soccer. Spectators find themselves on the edge of their seats for 80 minutes, at least those that choose to sit for the games. You combine the single-elimination format, with the freezing temperatures, and most of the fans are left standing up, huddled together under blankets, rooting on their teams.

That was the scene last night at Weymouth High, where the Wildcats hosted the Sandwich Blue Knights in a Division 1 South girls quarterfinal. It's a scene played out every November as the tournament winds down until a champion is crowned.

It is a stark contrast to what the teams face at the beginning of the season in the dog days of summer, with tryouts and practices held in 90-degree heat with suffocating humidity. There, the drinks of choice are water or Gatorade, and the players might have a sliced up orange. Last night, the fans lined up at the concession stand for hot chocolate and coffee, and tried to stay warm by eating clam chowder and chili.

"This is what we talked about with the players," said Weymouth coach John McIntyre, who is in his first season as head coach of the Wildcats. "This is why they work so hard all year, to get a chance to be playing now. And to get a chance to play on their home field, in front of their friends and family, it's a great opportunity."

That was after Weymouth handed Sandwich a 1-0 loss. The Wildcats carried the play through most of the game, but Sandwich goalie Abbi Santos kept her squad in the game, denying Weymouth bids all night. Weymouth finally broke through with less than seven minutes remaining when Kim Clooney was able to head in a loose ball off of a Jenna Goodwin corner kick.

"The later it got in the game I was thinking 'We're clearly going to overtime,'" said McIntyre. "I said it at halftime, you don't want to see it but how many times have you seen a soccer game where one team dominates and the other team gets one chance and one goal."

The Blue Knights were hoping to follow that script, with Santos playing the lead role, but it was not to be as their season came to an end.

"We don’t have to defend a shot outside the 18 because she's going to gobble them up," said Sandwich coach Rich Rossomando of his goalie. "We want teams to shoot from out there."

There were plenty of spectators who made the trek up from the Cape to root for the Blue Knights, contributing to a great playoff atmosphere. Some students even lent their support by going shirtless and writing the uniform numbers on their chests, not exactly an advisable move in the freezing temperatures.

"That was tremendous," said Rossomando. "I went over and thanked all the fans for making the trip and cheering for the girls."

Weymouth moved on to the semifinals to play Bishop Feehan Friday night at Whitman-Hanson. A win would put them back on familiar ground.

"We just found out that the sectional finals are back here," said McIntyre of his home field. "We're 10-0-1 here, so if there was a need for any extra motivation to reach the finals, that was it."

So sure, it may feel more like football weather, or maybe you'd rather head indoors as hockey and basketball get ready to start, but there's still one more week left for soccer and field hockey, where the best is saved for the last part of the season.