Ruden Sports News

The Greenwich boys soccer team’s 4-1 Class LL quarterfinal win at home over Norwalk today was obviously decided during the 26-minute span in the second half when the Cardinals did all their scoring.

But it might not have happened without the 35 minutes that preceded their outburst, when the Cardinals chased a 1-0 deficit with poise instead of panic, resoluteness rather than angst.

“That’s what it’s all about, getting each other up,” said Francisco Luzuriaga, who put home the equalizer and go-ahead goals. “You know the ball is going to go in if we’re playing at the best of our game, if everybody’s helping each other out the ball is going to go in eventually. It’s something special. We’re all friends, we all get along with each other. I think that’s what keeps us going.”

The third-seeded Cardinals (18-0-3) are now two wins away from an undefeated season. They will face No. 7 Farmington in the semifinals Wednesday at 7 at Newtown High School.

Winning both league and state titles in the sport is a rare feat given the degree of competition and the quick bounce back between tournaments. It was last accomplished in 2012 by Norwalk, which was co-champion in the state tournament. The last team to win both outright was Staples in 2009.

Now the Cardinals are on the precipice of what would also be their second title in three years, with a team their coach, Kurt Putnam, talks about admiringly both because of the skill level and character.

“We had to keep doing what we were doing and trust the process, like at Ridgefield, trust the players,” said Putnam, referring to a 5-2 win in which the Cardinals also scored four times in the second half to overcome what was their only other deficit of the season. “It’s a really good group of lads. I thought one of the keys, the guys didn’t get frustrated when they were down, they didn’t get down when their keeper made saves and once they equalized everything opened up. I told them at halftime there’s only one thing we’ve got to do better and that’s anticipate the second ball better.”

The Bears (8-7-3), who were seeded 27th, took the lead on a nifty goal in the 14th minute. Will Butler delivered a ball in the box and Juan Mesa soared and headed it home.

The score stayed that way in large part because of the play from Norwalk goalkeeper Dalton Bury, a first-team All-FCIAC selection who turned away a number of what appeared to be certain goals.

“He played incredible and he kept them in the game early,” Putnam said.

The Cardinals finally broke through in the 49th minute. Luzuriaga got the goal but it was an unselfish play by Gui Rizzo that created it.

“He had the goal right in front of him,” Luzuriaga said. “I just called for the ball and he saw me and he gave me a great pass. All I had to do was shoot it. The keeper was great for them.”

Luzuriaga scored what proved to be the winning goal on a well-placed shot from the left side in the 62nd minute, and moments later Santiago Lattuada banged home an insurance goal off the rebound of a ball that hit the crossbar following a corner kick. Rizzo got the final goal in the 73rd minute, with a shot that deflected in off a defender.

Norwalk coach Jose Canahui, who lost two starters in the second round match, was disappointed with the result but proud of the effort from his players during the tournament.

“It’s unfortunate but you have to put out there the team that you have and roll with it,” Canahui said. “I think we have one of the best goalkeepers in the FCIAC but the numbers don’t show it. He played a great game.”

Putnam used a phrase more commonly heard in American football to describe a key attribute of his team.

“Our offense is our best defense,” Putnam said. “You see how far we keep the other teams away from our own goal because of the way that we can play. After that first one went in for us you’re like, OK, now let’s see what we’ve got. That’s this group of players. They adjust, they keep going.”