After already beating White Plains twice in the regular season, the boys’ soccer team was expected to get an easy win in the team’s first playoff game against White Plains on Friday, October 23. Surprisingly, the game turned out to be a nerve-racking battle between third seed Scarsdale and fourteenth seed White Plains. Within the first few minutes of the game, White Plains scored, leaving the Raiders fans shocked and anxious. “It was earlier on and we weren’t able to get the ball moving well yet, but we had to stay focused and not put our heads down,” commented Michael Spiro ’17. And the boys did just that, working hard until the very end. Midway through the second half Fayez Merchant ’18 scored one for Scarsdale, renewing everyone’s hope and energy. Perhaps just as great as Merchant’s goal was his quick dance move for which he faced the crowd and “hit the whip,” a popular dance move inspired by the song Watch Me by Silentó, in celebration. Unfortunately, later in the half Nacho Marini ’16, in an effort to score, was knocked down and had to be helped off the field. Marinelli went straight to the hospital where he found out he had a badly sprained ankle (Feel better!). With a score of only 1-1 by the end of the second half, the game went into dreaded overtime. After multiple “just-missed” shots from White Plains, Spiro managed to score off a cross from Justin Barlow ’16 in the second half of overtime, winning the game for Scarsdale. “In overtime I was just trying to make sure that this wouldn’t be the seniors’ last game. We all have worked so hard this season, and I didn’t want to let that come to nothing,” shared Spiro. The players ran to tackle and congratulate Spiro with all the Raiders’ fans, including the entire football team, close behind. As students rushed to the field to congratulate the team, White Plains was left to return to their bus where they could weep in privacy.
The Raiders are looking to make a long run in the playoffs and ask fans attending games to wear white in support of the team. The quarterfinals game against Ketcham is scheduled for Monday, October 26 at 3pm at the track. Go Ders!
Photo Courtesy Ariel Kachuro (Maroon Photo Director)
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