Claremont
Moote, who was called “the real deal” by Stevens coach Jason Stone, has three goals, all on penalty kicks this season. He said there is a reason he can shoot.
“I have a goal in the back yard,” Moote said. “I practice all the time.”
Asked if he really wasn’t a frustrated forward, Moote said he wouldn’t mind playing the line.
“But I’ll just play where coach sends me,” he added.
Both Stevens and Windsor have been scuffling along this season. The Cardinals, after winning their opener over Fall Mountain, came into Tuesday’s game with five straight losses, having been outscored, 25-2.
“We were pretty good tonight,” said Stone, who is trying to make the most of a situation with numbers (19 players) and a move up to NHIAA Division II. “It was nice we got rewarded tonight for all the hard work.”
Windsor is now 1-5, and while the final score looked like a rout, there were a couple of plays during the game that were pivotal.
With the Jacks trailing, 1-0, with less than 10 minutes to play in the first half, Windsor’s Dan Cordillo broke away from the crowd near midfield and came in on Moote one on one. Moote came out of the cage and, as Cardillo fired, sprawled and flashed his left leg out, the ball caroming off his foot and out of harm’s way.
The second key play occurred with 20:29 to go in the second half in a 2-1 game. Windsor was called for a takedown in the penalty area, and Moote converted the ensuing spot kick.
“That was a real momentum swing,” first-year Windsor coach Steve Mulloy said. “We were playing real consistent soccer. That hurt.”
While Moote was the No. 1 star, Windsor junior keeper Eli Milligan kept making plays and booming punts.
“He’s as good a goalkeeper as I had in 25 years at Lebanon,” said former Raider coach Rob Johnstone, who is a Windsor teacher and helps when he can with the soccer program.
Milligan finished with nine saves.
The game was nearly 30 minutes gone before Stevens got on the board as Moote’s brother, Brady Moote, was knocked over in the penalty area. Parker Moote raced down the field from his goalkeeping spot and put the Cardinals in front with a high kick just under the crossbar.
Parker Moote made the big save on Cardillo a minute later, and the score stayed 1-0 at the break.
Stone, who was Johnstone’s junior varsity coach at Lebanon for six years, said he was a bit worried at halftime and addressed the situation.
“I kept telling them to get after it,” he said. “We could have been working harder.”
The goal that put Stevens up 2-0 was a dandy. Ian Fitzpartick did the legwork to get the ball up the field. He swung the ball toward the middle for Brennan Huntoon, who then set up Josh Thurber to drill a shot home.
Windsor cut the gap to 2-1 with 24:57 to play when Cardillo, on a breakaway, knocked in his own rebound after an initial save by Moote.
But that was the end of the scoring for Windsor, as Stevens put the game away with its second penalty kick and a goal from Dylan Chambers, with the assist going to Fitzpatrick.
Stevens visits Kennett on Friday, while Windsor hosts Green Mountain on Saturday.
Stevens Girls Win, Too: Windsor and Stevens made up a rained-out girls soccer game earlier on Wednesday, with the Cardinals rolling to a 6-0 win. Audrey Puksta had four goals for Stevens, with single tallies for Julia Belaire and Jenna Pond. Puksta has a quartet of four-goal games to her credit this season and is among the Upper Valley’s top strikers with 18 goals.
The Cardinals (7-1-0) visit Hopkinton on Saturday. Windsor (3-2-0) welcomes Green Mountain on Saturday for its homecoming match.