Weston boys soccer holds on to beat No. 7 Bethel

WESTON — The Weston boys soccer team has been beating SWC opponents by so much lately that the starters are usually on the bench by the midpoint of the second half. That was until Bethel, ranked No. 7 in the CSCA Class LL/L Poll, came to town and gave the Trojans all they could handle. Though Bethel gave it a scare in the second half, Weston held on for the 1-0 win, remaining unbeaten in the SWC. It was the first loss of the season for Bethel which fell to 8-1-2 on the season while Weston improved to 8-1-1 with its lone loss coming in the opening game to SCC opponent Fairfield Prep. For Weston coach Kevin Fitzsimmons, a hard-fought win over a quality opponent is just what the Trojans needed with the postseason beginning in two weeks. “We need games like that because that is what it’s going to be like in the postseason,” Fitzsimmons said. “Credit to our boys because we haven’t had a game like that since we played Masuk in our first SWC game this year. The boys did well to manage that type of intensity and that type of pressure. No disrespect to the teams we played but we have been able to dominate possession, but Bethel came at us tonight.” Bethel did well in controlling Weston’s top scorer Max Weiss but the Trojans have multiple weapons on offense and finally broke through with a goal two minutes into the second half on the lone mental lapse in the Bethel defense. Weston’s Oliver Hutton was the only player to go after a ball that looked like it would roll out of bounds, stopping it just before it crossed the end line. Hutton lofted the loose ball back toward the goal where a streaking Jake Rutsky was able to get a foot on it and drive it into the net. “My lads are that good, they always make me look like a good coach,” Fitzsimmons said. “I made a couple of subs at halftime and my leftback Olly (Hutton) made a lovely ball for Jake Rutsky. We are getting goals from all over the field. That’s a really big win tonight and the boys are very happy with it.” After the goal, Bethel went on the offensive and applied pressure to the Weston defense over the final 30 minutes, but could not get the equalizer. “I love the way we responded after they scored a goal,” Bethel coach Anthony Fernandes said. “I thought we were the better team in the second half. In the first half, they were the better team and put a lot of pressure on us. Our goalkeeper did a great job keeping us in it with some nice saves. After, they scored, we really took control of the game. We were moving the ball, playing with confidence, using the whole field, switching the point of attack and we created chances. The difference in these close game is finishing the chances.” PLAYER OF THE GAME Max Hutton, Weston, Sr, MF: Hutton controlled the flow of the game all night from his defensive center midfield position, routinely winning the ball and turning it back up for his offense. QUOTABLE “(Bethel) is a great team and they brought a lot of pressure,” Hutton said. “We know how to play good teams and we have the grit and we have the heart and that’s why we won.” Sericson@stamfordadvocate.com; @EricsonSports WESTON 1, BETHEL 0 BETHEL 0 0—0 WESTON 0 1—1 Scoring: W—Jake Rutsky 1g; Oliver Hutton 1a Goalies: B—Ben D’Amico 8 saves; W—Matt Lautenbach 3 saves

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