WILMINGTON — Salesianum welcomed national powerhouse St. Benedict’s Prep to Abessinio Stadium on Oct. 7, and the Gray Bees, who made the trip from Newark, N.J., captured a 3-0 victory to remain undefeated.
The Gray Bees are the current No. 1 team in the country, according to the United Soccer Coaches poll. The Sals entered the past week ranked seventh.
St. Benedict’s features Ransford Gyan, the reigning national high school player of the year, and has allowed just two goals all season. They have played Sallies for several years now, so their skill came as no surprise to the Sals, but it was still impressive to see.
The Gray Bees kept possession for long stretches during the first half, keeping the pressure on the Salesianum defense and goalkeeper Andrew Scott. They earned their first corner kick in the sixth minute, but two shots resulting from the opportunity missed the mark.
They didn’t miss in the seventh, when a crossing pass was headed in high. The Gray Bees added to the lead in the 14th. After a corner kick, Gyan got the ball along the end line, and his cross was knocked in by a teammate. Scott had no chance on either goal.
There were three more corner kicks for the Gray Bees over the next several minutes, but the Salesianum defense was able to keep the deficit at two. Offensively, the Sals had some good looks, particularly late in the first half, but they were unable to solve the St. Benedict’s back line. Salesianum’s best chance came in the final two minutes of the half. Gianluca Marroni had a long free kick, which he sent toward the Gray Bees’ keeper. The ball handcuffed the keeper, but he was able to fall on the loose ball after a brief scramble..
Gyan added the final goal on a penalty kick in the 60th minute.
Final statistics were not available early Sunday morning. The Sals (7-2-1) have another challenging date on Tuesday when Conestoga (Pa.) visits Abessinio for a 7:30 p.m. start. The Pioneers are 14-0, including 12 shutouts, and are 10th in the latest United Soccer Coaches rankings.
All photos by Mike Lang.
