DANNY KIDDER clears the Warrior zone with a header against Billerica. (Dan Pawlowski Photo)
By DAN PAWLOWSKI
WAKEFIELD — The Wakefield High boys’ soccer team ditched their first round state tournament nerves and decisively shut out visiting Billerica 1-0 in a Round of 16 matchup at Landrigan Field on Friday night.
The top-ranked Warriors (17-2-1) advanced to the Div. 2 quarterfinals with the win. They will host No. 9 Revere (14-2-2) tomorrow night, 5 p.m. back at Landrigan.
“The first thing I said was ‘welcome back,’” said head coach Matt Angelo when asked what his message to the team was after the victory over the Indians. “Last game was not who we are. I think nerves got to us and the pressure kind of hit us. We went into this game so relaxed, we just treated it like another game and even from the warm-ups we saw a different energy and that’s what we’re trying to replicate.
“This is the team we’ve had all year and I’m glad they could do it on this stage. The scoreboard says 1-0 but I thought it was more one-sided.”
Angelo, who was referencing Wakefield’s hard-fought and nerve-racked 3-2 win over Silver Lake in the first round, was certainly happy with a defense that featured freshman goalkeeper Kai Mercer’s first tournament shutout thanks in large part to a dominant effort from the back line of juniors Aidan Bligh, Aden Stevenson, Nik Dhingra and Danny Kidder.
Wakefield’s lone goal was scored by junior Mhamed Boukataya assisted by junior captain Jack Millward about 12 minutes into the game. That lead held for the final 68 minutes in a contest that felt less tense and precarious than Wakefield’s previous one-goal victory this postseason. The Warriors were in complete control on Friday night with far more scoring opportunities and far less shaky moments on defense — a more familiar identity for the 2024 Middlesex League champs.
“We had a good practice yesterday and we did a good job of staying in shape and marking the weak side – we were pretty horrible at that last game so we did that and just stayed goal-side and tried not to let anyone behind us,” said Bligh.
“We worked on communication and all being on the same page so we can limit our mistakes,” added Sevenson as the two center backs were locked in from start to finish, organizing their defense, clearing any dangerous chances and playing fast and physical to put on a defensive clinic that Wakefield soccer always prides itself on.
“We just addressed last game and said, ‘look what we’re doing here we don’t do this,’” said Angelo. “Our back line has been our rock all season and we were kind of just discombobulated (against Silver Lake) and so I think that was helpful for us to get it out in the open and yesterday we had a very light practice and got back into the swing of things and that was all it was: move on, get past it and focus on the next round.”
That focus was clear from kick-off as the Warriors wasted no time in getting on the front foot, much to the delight of a terrific fan base that has played their part well in Wakefield’s home-field advantage as the No. 1 seed this year.
Boukataya’s goal came after minutes of sustained pressure and control. Possession in the midfield from senior captain Charles Gagne and later a whipped cross in by sophomore Guy Revah got the Warriors some space on the left side. With Millward and the forwards battling for the ball, Boukataya found it bouncing just outside the box and hit it on a volley, perfectly into the far right side of the goal, setting off a celebration with a group of Warrior soccer alums who had the best view of the tally from behind the cage.
Shockingly the only goal of the game, Boukataya’s finish was early validation that the Warriors were at their best in this one.
The midfielders were just as impressive as the defenders, especially in the first half as Gagne and junior Matt Keefe helped Wakefield maintain most of the possession battle. They were also vital in creating more chances as was Revah and fellow sophomore Alex De Morais.
Mercer’s best stop of the game came with 18 minutes left in the first half to keep the Warriors in front, diving from right to left to get a finger on a low shot off a free kick.
“He’s amazing, he can save everything,” said Bligh when asked of the confidence the Wakefield defense has in their freshman keeper.
“Really impressive,” added Stevenson, something that was true of Mercer in the second half as well. He had a strong punch out of a cross midway through the second stanza and battled through a physical Billerica forward group to maintain control of the game.
Of course, the defense more than did their part as well, never forcing their young keeper to face too much sustained pressure as they calmly kept the visitors at arm’s length to help the Warriors cruise to the quarterfinals, much to the delight of a huge student section and a supportive Wakefield soccer community that will certainly be excited to do it all over again on Tuesday night.
“They gave us that little extra boost we needed,” said Bligh.
“We have some great fans,” agreed Stevenson. “The Red Sea always shows out, they’re always loud and it always propels us.”
And about those aforementioned Warrior soccer alums? They made plenty of noise to help the defense defend their lead in the second half.
“They’re our main motivators back there,” said Stevenson, drawing a laugh and a nod from Bligh. Those former teammates led Wakefield to the state championship game last season. They want to see their boys make it back this year.
Wakefield needs two more wins to return to that stage, starting tomorrow night against a strong Patriots team that has so far defeated No. 24 East Longmeadow 2-1 and No. 8 Bedford 2-1 on penalty kicks. The Wakefield-Revere winner will move on to the Final Four where they will meet the winner of No. 4 Hingham vs. No. 5 Minnechaug who are set to match up at Hingham High on Thursday night.
For now, Angelo and his Warriors have celebrated a strong win and are currently preparing for yet another exciting postseason battle at home.
“It’s always survive and advance in the tournament so enjoy the win today, be happy with the performance and as soon as the clock hits midnight it’s back to work and getting ready for Revere.”
