WORCESTER — Sometimes games don't always turn out the way a team wants them to.
The Masconomet boys soccer team watched as Ludlow celebrated a 2-1 victory and its second straight Division 1 championship at Worcester State University's John Coughlin Field last night.
In fairness to the Chieftains, who finished their Cinderella season at 17-4-3, soccer isn't just a sport in the city of Ludlow — it's a way of life. This is the Lions' second straight title, third in the last four years and 17th state championship overall.
Masco went into last night's contest with all the hope in the world that they could take down the defending champs. The first half was about as even of a battle as each team could possibly strive for. The Chieftains and Ludlow both had scoring opportunities in the first, but strong defense on both ends remained rock solid.
"We got the scouting reports on them and we knew who their best players were," said Masco Coach Dave Mitchell, who made his first appearance in the state final as he coach. "I know we came prepared to face them tonight."
Eight minutes in the second half, one of Ludlow's senior defenders, Greg Santos was issued a yellow card. Just seconds later on an indirect free kick from nearly 30 yards out, Chad Burke connected with Chip Sherman for the opening goal, giving Masco its only lead of the night. Sherman jumped up just as the ball sailed past him and tipped it in with the back of his head.
Burke appeared to be unstoppable on corner kicks for the Chieftains. His shots were directly on net, but Lions goalie Nick Zucco was always there to shutdown Masconomet scoring opportunities.
Ludlow's Kyle Tomas ripped a cannon from 40 yards out that went straight by goalie Derek Grammer's extended body and tied the score at one a piece.
"I kind of saw the ball in the last couple of seconds," explained Grammer. "I tried to get to it, but it was a little too high for me. It's frustrating, but it was a good shot I have to say. He put it exactly where he needed to put it."
Once the Lions got the tying goal, there was no stopping them. They applied serious offensive pressure that Masco just couldn't shutdown. With traffic in front of the Chieftains goal, Ludlow's Jeff Danek made a perfect cross over to Tomas and watched as he buried his second goal of the contest, which proved to be the winning marker for the Lions.
"The guy's really feed off his energy and his skill level," said Lions coach Greg Kolodziey of Tomas. "We had to maintain our patience after Masco scored, keep the ball and try to get as many chances as we could. We thought that if we got one (goal) that we would probably have a good chance at getting two."
Burke was among four other starting seniors (Alex Brown, Charlie Behrens and Wes Shrewsbury) on this Chieftains squad and as difficult as it is for Masco to lift its head, many of the members in the starting lineup will be right back at it again next year.
"For us to make it this far its a dream come true," added Grammer, who will be one of the returning players next fall. "I'm proud of the way we played last night and hopefully we can do it again next year too. It's tough to lose, but it's still a good season in my book."
