The Becker boys soccer team iced the St. John’s Johnnies in the championship game  and went on to win the Watertown Mayer Tournament for the second year in a row last weekend.

Watertown Mayer Tournament In the first game of the Saturday tournament, Becker faced off against a formidable foe in Watertown Mayer and beat them, 2-1.

 

The Crusaders entered the tournament as the number one seed and were ranked 20th in the state with a record of 8-2.

 

Watertown Mayer looked the part of world beaters as they took to the field with crisp passing and ball control while setting a hard trap on defense.  However, they came up against Becker's stifling defense and the two teams tested each other for most of the first half.  

 

Later on in the match on a Mayer Lutheran corner kick, the Bulldog's senior defender Owen Houghton deflected the ball near out of trouble, but  Mayer Lutheran's captain returned the ball at goalkeeper Hunter McCalla and it sailed up and in.

 

The half eventually ended with the Crusaders up 1-0.

 

The second half saw Becker gain some tempo and  captains Collin McDowell and Qadry Fahkreddine started to  expose the gaps in Mayer Lutheran's defense.  In due course it paid off when Fahkreddine found junior leftwinger Tate Weise streaking down the side and sent him the ball. The perfect pass put Weise in on a breakaway and with veteran precision, Weise netted his first varsity goal.

 

Later in the half on a Bulldog breakaway, the Crusaders’ keeper left the box and picked up the ball at the 30.  His mistake would cost them dearly as he was red-carded and Mayer Lutheran was left with 10 players on the field.  Regular time would expire with the score knotted at 1-1.

 

In overtime, Becker captain Nick Vieau put a throw-in to Fahkreddine who headed it up field to McDowell, whose shot  across the goal found the net behind the keeper.  Becker stalled out the last few moments and went on to beat Mayer Lutheran by the one goal.

 

In the championship game, Becker met Granite Ridge Conference rival Saint John's Prep and eked out a close, 1-0 win.

 

The last time these two met was Sept. 15 when the Johnnies bested the Bulldogs, 2-0.  

 

This time the Bulldogs were determined to prove they are much improved since last month and the two teams tested each other out the first half with it eventually going scoreless.

Early in the second half, however, Becker’s junior attacking forward Brandon Abrahamson cleaned up a turnover and crossed down the field where he spotted Vieau making a run on the far sideline.  Abrahamson put the ball past the keeper and Vieau chipped the ball up and over his head and into the back of the net for the score.

 

 

The defense and goalie for Becker kept the Johnnies at bay the rest of the way and the Bulldogs walked off the pitch at the end of the day with the tournament championship.

Sauk Rapids 1, Becker 0

 

Becker faced off against Sauk Rapids (6-4-2) Tuesday night and couldn’t find the back of the net in a one-goal loss.  The Storm headed into Tuesday’s game coming off of a huge win against state champion Apollo the night before.  

 

“We knew that they were coming off a big game,” said Head Coach Alex Jurek. “And we were hoping that there was not a carry-over from that win.  However, Coach Keller had his boys ready to play.”

 

The two teams battled for the midfield and worked the ball up at the others' keepers all night. By halftime, the two teams were settled in at 0-0.  

 

Midway through the second half, the Storm caught the Bulldog defense playing a little to far up.  A quick pass to Junior Grant Marolf and he was off to the races with only the keeper between him and the goal.  Becker goalie Hunter McCalla stretched over his right shoulder, but failed to tip the ball out of the goal. 

 

The Storm went up by one and held on for the victory.

 

Marolf, who has nine goals in the last five games, had his goal assisted by McKinley Lain.

 

Ethan Baker had 10 saves in goal to get the shutout for Sauk Rapids.

 

“The best soccer in the state is being played in Central Minnesota,” said Jurek. “The parity in this area is unreal and everyone is playing at a level I have never seen before.”  

 

Jurek said on any night, any match is up for grabs in this league.  

 

“You don't see the blowout scores in this area like you see in the rest of the state,” he said.

 

 

Ian Jonovsky and Javier Navarro each scored second-half goals in a Granite Ridge Conference win for St. John’s Prep Thursday afternoon in Collegeville.

 

Jack Grell and Riah Lee each had assists for the Johnnies (5-2 Granite Ridge, 7-6-1 overall). St. John’s Prep goalkeeper Joey Stock made five saves.

 

Becker plays at Little Falls Tuesday then return home to play Rockford Thursday.