Elmont sharp in win at Long Beach

Given the way his team performed in its 3-1 Conference AA-III boys’ soccer victory at Long Beach on Sept. 20, Elmont coach Pat Corvetti wouldn’t mind playing the remainder of the season on the Marines’ beautiful turf field at the middle school.

“This surface is great and worked to our advantage,” Corvetti said after senior forward Benji Alonge’s two goals helped the Spartans improve to 3-0 in conference games and maintain the early driver’s seat. “The kids worked really hard all summer on one-touch ball movement,” he added. “We’re senior-led and are getting better every game. Today was the best we’ve looked all season.”

It was the first loss for Long Beach (4-1 overall after rebounding with a win over Carey), which fields the youngest team in the conference with only three seniors on a roster that runs 24-deep. It started the conference schedule with back-to-back victories over Great Neck South and Herricks. “Elmont’s experienced and talented, and locked down some of our key players in the midfield,” Marines coach Leo Palacio said. “We didn’t move the ball as well offensively as we did the first two games, but we’re a young team and still growing.”

Elmont (5-0 overall) outshot Long Beach by a 10-3 margin and scored the only goal of the first half in the 11th minute. It came off the foot of senior Idris Adeyemi, who banged home a rebound in the goalmouth as the Spartans scored first for the fourth time in as many games. Marines sophomore goalkeeper Thomas Marcote was busy throughout the half and made key saves on Adeyemi and senior Hans Avrilus and caught a break when senior Esosa Aluyi blasted a shot off the post with 3:25 remaining.

Early in the second half, however, the visitors struck twice in a three-minute span to take a commanding lead. Alonge, who led Nassau County in goals last season with 24, was the source of both goals. He made it 2-0 with 30:08 left in the contest and 3-0 with 27:16 to play, regaining the county goal lead over Hicksville’s Kyle Poetzsch. Alonge has eight goals, including a hat trick in the season-opening non-league win over Valley Stream North.

“Ben’s an artist with the ball,” Corvetti said. “He makes a lot of things happen. Teams are marking him closely, but he’s tough to contain for an entire game.”

Long Beach avoided the shutout with 4:01 remaining when junior David Coronel deflected a ball past senior keeper Alex Servin, who hadn’t given up a goal in 2012 playing behind a defense led by senior fullback John Rogers. A captain along with senior midfielder Chad Barker, Rogers is also an offensive weapon on throw-ins and had a goal and an assist in a 3-0 win at Mepham in the conference opener. “It’s essentially a corner kick when he throws,” Corvetti said.

The Spartans are home against Great Neck South on Thursday, Sept. 27 at 4:30 p.m., while the Marines take on Kennedy under the lights at 7 p.m.