Team Youth nets comeback win

Legends Game ends with last-minute goal as Youth beats Experience, 4-3

(Conditions for the 2024 Legends Game were snow, snow and more snow. Photo by Greg Klein.)

Youth scored four unanswered goals to beat Experience, 4-3, in the 2024 Legends Game, Thursday, Nov. 28, on a snowy pitch at the Lambert 2 Field.

For most of the match, the senior side used the poor playing conditions to their advantage and seemed poised to redeem themselves from last year’s embarrassing 8-0 loss.

Experience applied steady pressure early on and controlled play throughout the first half taking a 2-0 lead into the break.

Josh Weeks opened the scoring when he received a pass on the left wing, carried it toward the top of the box and sent a high shot over goalie Sean Mebust that dropped into the backside net.

A few minutes later, Todd Ashley played a ball toward the right post from about twenty yards out that David Zoltick cleverly redirected from behind himself with an above the waist heel flick at the six for the second goal.

(Romain Guerra kicks the ball for Team Youth on Thursday. Photo by Greg Klein.)

Never really threatening over the first 30-minute frame, Youth was able to create some good chances in the second, but they were repeatedly denied by Experience goalkeeper Dan Cunningham, who made several diving saves that belied his status as the game’s most experienced player.

Instead, it was Experience who scored next, when Dan Crowell lofted a pass from the left wing with fatherly care over his son Paul to Chad Welch in the middle of the field just outside the penalty area.

Welch hit a quick shot over a retreating Mebust that seemed like he might have been airmailed to the elementary school, but thanks to the heavy snowfall it dropped into the empty goal for a 3-0 lead.

Following a flurry of activity in front of the Experience goal, Youth finally got past Cunningham when Riley Diamond finished from close range with about 12 minutes remaining.

The sloppy pitch and sloppy play led to two more goals for Youth as Ted Mebust ended a scrum in the goal mouth with a header and Roland Gardner-Olesen added the equalizer from close range under similar circumstances with about four minutes left to play.

Colby Diamond broke free after he and Ashley collided about 25 yards out, and he was able to carry to goal and get by Cunningham for the winner with a little over a minute remaining while adding a bit of showmanship by dropping to a crawl to push the ball from just over the goal line into the net with his head.

It was Youth’s fourth win in the past five matches, following their first-ever victory in 2019.

(Matt Grady tries to get the ball past Aidan Klein. Photo by Greg Klein.)

Game Notes:

Most Legendary and MVP: Dan Cunningham (1988)

Harrison, Max and Tanner Clinton, Sean and Ted Mebust, and Colby and Riley Diamond were the siblings in attendance.

Dan Crowell and his son Paul were the only father-son duo in attendance.

Maggie Schuermann was the only lady Legend. Matt Schuermann attended the game but did not play against his daughter, who captained the Youth team.

Coach Frank Miosek celebrated his 74th birthday Thursday.