As the Caesar Rodney High School boys soccer team walked off the turf at Caravel Academy Nov. 16, the players had nothing to hang their heads about.
The Riders had just been eliminated from the DIAA state tournament in the quarterfinals in a 3-0 loss to Salesianum School, but perhaps more impressive than the Sallies win was the transformation the Riders have gone through this season.
Three months ago, the CR squad did not have set positions, there was no returning or incumbent keeper, and most players had never started before at the varsity level.
The team went 4-3 out of the gate before it started to take form, eventually rattling off a nine-game unbeaten streak that stretched through the first round of the playoffs, when the No. 9 Riders stormed back from a 2-0 deficit against No. 8 St. Elizabeth High School to win 3-2.
That earned Head Coach Darrell Gravatt’s team a shot at six-time defending state champion Salesianum, and his Riders responded, standing up to the Sals and playing with them for most of the 80-minute game.
“I thought the team played about as well as they could play,” Gravatt said. “We had a few chances and I certainly think we scared the heck out of Sallies. We bent a lot but we didn’t break.”
The Riders, heavy underdogs to the No. 1 Sals, did not give up the first goal until the 37th minute when Charles Wilson solved senior CR keeper and co-captain Bryce Morrow.
Sallies’ Andrew O’Malley, 68th minute, and Tyler Garvine, 74th minute, added the other goals in the contest.
The score could have been much more lopsided in the second half, however, if it weren’t for Morrow’s outstanding play, Gravatt said.
Morrow, who has been the starting keeper only for the second half of this season, made several incredible saves to keep his teammates in the game, the coach said.
“It took everything they could do to get it by him,” Gravatt said. “He made some incredible saves. He’s a fantastic keeper and a great athlete. He’s fearless. I don’t care how close you are, he’s not going to turn his head; he’s not going to blink his eyes. He’s got his eyes focused right on the ball.
Senior co-captain Jesse Marano added that it was Morrow who kept his team focused on competing throughout all 80 minutes, despite the score.
