12/2/21

SCRANTON, Pa. -- In a rematch from earlier this year, Wake Technical Community College bested Lackawanna College once again, winning their NJCAAE second round playoff match-up 3-0 (5-0, 4-0, 3-2) and ending the Falcons' fall season on Thursday night.

The Eagles had already handed Lackawanna College its only loss of the NJCAAE regular season earlier this year with a 3-0 win, so the Falcons came into the contest knowing this would be a difficult task. Early on in the first game, it seemed like both teams were struggling to get their offense in gear. A Caden Delaney (Gamertag: Bozi) shot from the right side hit the crossbar and skittered off to the left of the goal just 30 seconds in, and a Keenan Lewis (Gamertag: Fesbot) rebound shot hit the side frame. Delaney had another opportunity at the 3:50 mark of the first game, when he tracked a ball just in front of the Wake Tech goal, but an Eagles' defender was able to keep him from scoring. Wake Tech would miss an opportunity at the 2:14 mark when a centering pass was hit wide right of the goal, and that pressure on the Falcons' net would payoff when the Lackawanna defense misplayed a ball off the back-wall, leaving it open for Wake to pounce and score, making it 1-0 with 2:03 to go in the first. The Eagles would score again with 1:39 to go to make it 2-0, and Wake would add three more before the end of the match, as the offensive pressure really mounted up against the Falcons, who couldn't get the ball out of their defensive half for the rest of the first round. 

The second game went similarly for Wake, as the Eagles kept the pressure high on the Falcons defense, forcing Lackawanna College to spend the majority of the game on their collective back feet. That pressure gave the Eagles a 1-0 advantage just 40 seconds in, when a rebound from a shot from distance was slotted home for the 1-0 lead. After some desperate Falcon defending and some back-and-forth between the teams, Wake Tech found goal number two when the Falcons misplayed a ball in their own defensive end, resulting in a wide-open shot on goal to make it 2-0 with 2:29 to play in the second game. Juan Garcia (Gamertag: Jaepster) had Lackawanna's best shot of the period when he deflected a 50/50 ball towards the net, but it hit the top corner of the crossbar and the left post, bouncing harmlessly out. A nice give-and-go around the 1:50 mark between Delaney and Garcia resulted in a shot on target from Delaney, but the Wake Tech defense turned it away. From there, the Eagles defense would put the clamps on any more chances for Lackawanna, while Wake added another pair of goals to take game two, 4-0, and grab a 2-0 lead in the match.

The Falcons, facing an 0-2 hole with their season on the line, came out firing in the third game, matching the intensity from Wake Tech. After a scoreless opening two minutes, the Falcons found themselves desperately defending. Garcia made an aerial save in a 1v1 after a centering pass from Wake left him exposed, and the Falcons were fighting hard to get the ball out of their defensive zone. Finally, at 2:19 of the third period, Delaney took the ball on the left side, shot down the left wall, then centered a pass to a wide-open Garcia, who bounced it in for the first goal of the match for Lackawanna College. Ten seconds later, it would be Delaney adding a second, after a bad clearance from the Wake Tech defense gave him an open look from midfield on an aerial strike. Feeling the pressure, Wake Tech would reassert themselves, scoring in ten seconds to make it 2-1 with under two minutes to play. The Falcons found themselves defending hard the last two minutes, deflecting centering passes and shot attempts from the offensive onslaught brought by Wake Tech. Unfortunately, for the Falcons, the Eagles offensive pressure was too great, and a centered pass finally found its target, and Wake tied the game at two with just eight seconds remaining. Lackawanna College had a chance to win as the final seconds ticked by, as Garcia grabbed a turnover and launched a shot from midfield with three seconds left, but the clock ran out before the shot crossed the goal-line, cruelly stealing a possible win from the Falcons and sending it to overtime. Wake would need just six seconds in the sudden death period to find the winner, ending the game, the match, and the Falcons' season.
 
Lackawanna College finishes the NJCAAE 2021 Fall Rocket League season with a record of  8-2, and an overall record of 12-8 this year. The Falcons, who lost four of their first five matches this year, rattled off eleven wins in their final 15 matches to close out their fall season. It was a solid run this semester for the Falcons, and they will continue to practice their craft over the holidays and be back together competing during the spring series season.