The Friday homecoming game featured a goal by sophomore Max Rositas and senior Christian Hanowski in the first half. Senior Guliano Meirino struck early in the second half to make it a 3-0 game, and then senior Captain Cale McDowell, with two minutes left in the game, scored on a corner kick that he bent into the far side of the net. 

 

This completed the sweep of St. John’s Prep, which hasn’t been done in the history of the program. 

 

 

To start the week, the Bulldogs played host to the Zimmerman Thunder on parents’ night. Both teams possessed the ball for most of the first half, feeling out the opposition. 

 

And then in the 35th minute, senior Captain Jordan Gruenes scored to start the scoring for the Bulldogs. His breakaway goal energized the Bulldog offense and a few minutes later the home team struck again. Meirino won the ball back in the center of the field, took a touch and passed it to sophomore Carson Makarrall. 

 

Makarrall dangled around his opponents and passed it off to Gruenes up the field, Gruenes cut inside and guided it into the lower right corner for his second goal of the game. Hanowski added another goal early in the second half to put the Bulldogs up 3-0. 

 

The solid defensive performance for the next 30 minutes of the game let the Bulldogs coast to the end, and honor their parents with a 3-0 win. 

 

 

The following day, the last home game of the season — Senior Night — the Bulldogs took on Melrose.  

 

The starting lineup featured an all senior cast, with Gruenes making a cameo appearance in net (for the first 30 seconds of the game). Six minutes into the game, the Bulldogs pushed the ball up field and were fouled within scoring range. 

 

McDowell stepped up to take the freekick and hammered it past the Melrose keeper to put the Bulldogs up 1-0. 

 

About 10 minutes later, senior Sawyer Hietala took a 30-yard shot that pinged the crossbar. 

 

The Bulldogs, especially the seniors, were hungry to score. 

 

In the 32nd minute of the game, Gruenes received a ball over the top from senior Captain Hunter Buckentine. He was off to the races as he dribbled past the Melrose defender, cut by the goalkeeper and was blocked. 

 

Thirty seconds later, in the same minute of the game, Gruenes received a very similar ball, this time from Hietala, and cut just past the reach of the diving goalkeeper and — this time — slotted it into the back of the net. 

 

 

Gruenes, once again played a pivotal role to give the Bulldogs a cushion, and to honor the seniors and secure the win, sophomore Ray Lyon stepped up and scored a well-placed goal, assisted by Hanowski, for his second goal of the season. 

 

“Other than the two minutes in the second half, where we dropped our guard and they scored, we played brilliantly,” said Head Coach Nick Crowley. “We scored on a breakaway, on a set piece, and on some good linkup play in the middle. I was very happy with the boys, and especially with most of the seniors in their attitude to focus on the game at hand.”

 

With the win against Melrose, the Bulldogs improved their record to 10-3-1 on the season, breaking the team record for most wins in a season. 

 

Once more the Flyers put up a tough game to break another Bulldog win streak. 

 

For much of the game, possession went back and forth. Max Rositas almost struck again, Gruenes had a few nice chances, one in the last minute of the second half of overtime, and both McDowell and Hanowski almost assisted on set pieces again. 

 

Meirino and Junior Noah Fakhreddine controlled the center, and junior Parker Lahr had a fantastic game in net. 

 

As a whole the team played tough defense and smothered all of the chances Little Falls created, Little Falls did the same to the Bulldogs.

 

The Bulldogs stay at third in the conference at 7-2-2 (10-3-2 overall). 

 

The Bulldogs travel to Delano Saturday and section play begins Tuesday.