Interiano spurs Brentwood boys to third state soccer title
Brentwood senior Frank Guzman (10) reacts as he is congratulated for scoring a goal of during the second half. (Nov. 21, 2010) Credit: Christopher Pasatieri
MIDDLETOWN, N.Y. - In less than 24 hours, Johnathan Interiano scored to send Brentwood to the state Class AA boys soccer final for the fifth time in six years and then helped deliver Brentwood its third state title.
Interiano scored the go-ahead goal with 6:02 left Sunday as Brentwood beat Baldwinsville, 2-0, at Middletown High School's Faller Grass Field. It was the first state title since 2008 for Brentwood (20-1-2).
"We wanted to be the first large school on Long Island to do three," Brentwood coach Ron Eden said. "It's been our motto all year long - 'Two, you're in rare company; three, you're in really rare company.' "
Interiano took a pass from Juilo Olivares inside the 18-yard box and scored past Baldwinsville's Andrew Coughlin for a 1-0 lead.
"This was a real struggle for him today," Eden said of Interiano. "He's carrying such a big body as a 10th grader that he really had to dig down today. We knew we were a little dead-legged and used our bench and got the most out of him.
"Playing two games in less than 24 hours is really tough; I always said the state championship is a matter of survival. It's hard when you're not sleeping in your bed and you're not eating your regular diet."
Brentwood added an insurance goal when Frank Guzman fired a shot past a lunging Coughlin from 25 yards out into the top left corner with 3:48 left. "The goalie came up with the ball and punched it out; it came to my head and I just put it in front of me and I just ripped it," Guzman said. "I knew once I scored that goal, we won."
Guzman, a member of the 2008 team that won the state championship, said it was his dream to win again as a senior.
Herson Guzman had a much easier time in goal for Brentwood compared with his 11-save performance in the semifinal. Guzman had to make just three saves against Baldwinsville but said as time ticked down, he began to feel pressure.
"I can't let a shot in because that's going to be all on me if we don't win," Guzman said.
The closest scoring opportunity for Baldwinsville was a shot by Kyle Mulligan that hit the crossbar in the 48th minute. Coughlin made four saves for Baldwinsville (18-3-1).
The Indians had an outstanding sequence in the 70th minute, but came up short. Julio Olivares spun around a defender and passed ahead to Interiano, who then passed the ball to a darting Giancarlo Luna on the right side of the 18-yard box, but Luna's shot went wide of the goal.
