Triangle Y Soccer Club

The Hibs started strong against a very physical opponent. But they kept their cool and moved the ball smartly. Plenty of movement off the ball created a lot of space for the Hibs to do some nice passing sequences. Several chances in the first half did not find their way into the back of the net. United got a few chances of their own, but the defense, led by JD and Greg shut down any threat.

The second half started just like the first, tied 0-0 and playing pretty evenly. But, the Hibs started turning the tide and eventually won a corner kick. Brian's beautiful cross found Buzz's head and the ball squeaked into the goal in the 51st minute. United started pressing harder and threw everything they had at the Hibs, only to be turned back time after time. On one of those defensive stops, Colin played a deep ball to Gabriel on the run. The defender dragged him down as he went past, resulting in a penalty shot. The keeper made a terrific save on Buzz's shot to keep United in the game, but they wouldn't really threaten to score again.

Goals
     Buzz

Goalkeeper
      Graham, 4 shots, 0 GA, 100%

The Hibs didn't come out as strong as they did in the first game. They definitely had a size advantage over the '94 Cougars who were playing up an age level, but the Hibs just didn't seem to get into gear. Buzz opened the scoring in the 17th minute on a 20-yard shot after he stole the ball from a Cougar defender. Juan followed that up in the 28th minute. Gerald played a short pass around the defender and Juan drilled it to the far post from 15 yards.

The Hibs seemed to come to life for a few minutes to open the second half as Juan made a terrific run with the ball down the right sideline. His cross was mishandled by the keeper and Zack was there to tuck it away. The Hibs seemed to go back to sleep a bit as it looked as if the Cougars would never really threaten to take over the game. Graham dominated defensively and transitioned the ball well, but there was just no finish. In the 64th minute, Evan played a short ball to Colin who beat several defenders at the top of the box and ripped a shot into the left corner of the net. The Hibs got away with a lackadaisical effort against a much weaker opponent.

Goals
     Buzz, Juan, Zack, Colin

Goalkeeper
      JD, 5 shots, 0 GA, 100%

The Hibs came up against a very good Annihilators team for their 3rd game of the tournament. Both teams had won their games on Saturday while the other 5 teams each had at least 1 loss. The winner of this game would definitely be in the driver's seat for the top position of the tournament. Both teams would have to contend with strong crosswinds creating awful dust storms and really impacting the flow of the game.

The Annihilators came out strong and had the Hibs on their heels for a good portion of the game. But the Hibs would not get pushed around and began to turn the tide. This was a very physical and even game. Several chances for both teams were turned away by the opposing defense.

Late in the second half, the Annihilators took advantage of a Hibs defense thinking a corner kick had been awarded when it was really a throw-in. The quick throw took them by surprise and the impossible angle shot from the goal line trickled into the goal. The Hibs worked hard to get the goal back, but it would never come.

Goals
     none

Goalkeeper
     Gabriel, 8 shots, 1 GA, 87.5%

With the possibility of a second place finish at stake, the Hibs came out strong in their final game of the tournament. Unbelievably, the crosswinds got stronger and impacted almost every pass and shot. Due to the winds, the right side of the field was like a magnet in the first half. Juan, Buzz, and Colin worked terrific passing sequences to create opportunities up front. Strangely, though, the best chance came down the left side. In the 32nd minute, JD's quick goal kick got to Evan and he raced through the Arsenal defenders to midfield. He pushed the ball thru to Joey racing down the left wing who beat the charging Arsenal keeper for the 1-0 lead.

The second half was all Hibs as they kept the ball in the Arsenal half of the field for a good portion of the half. The Hibs created several scoring chances but just couldn't find the handle. Arsenal had a few good chances of their own, but Graham was stellar in the net.

The 1-0 win put them in a tie with the OYSA Strike with 9 points. Because the Hibs didn't play the Strike, it came down to goal differential. The Strike were +7 and the Hibs were +5, putting them in 3rd place.

Goals
     Joey

Goalkeeper
     Graham, 8 shots, 0 GA, 100%

The Hibs kicked off the regular season with a dominating performance. The Hibs started strong, controlling the pace of the game with sharp passing, moving the ball and making runs into space to create opportunities. Buzz and Colin controlled the action on the right side, while Brian and Joey tore up the left. The excellent playing opened up the SYSL defense for some chances, but the Hibs had difficulty making good on them. JD and Josh anchored an outstanding defense to keep the game in the opponent's end of the field.

Finally, in the 30th minute, Buzz and Colin worked a beautiful one-two passing sequence to penetrate the defense. Colin pushed the ball thru to Josh and he finished it off for the 1-0 lead. Only 3 minutes later, Buzz turned on the jets and drove deep behind the SYSL defense with the ball and crossed it to Joey for the 2-0 halftime lead.

The Hibs got a bit casual to start the second half, and the crisp passing seemed to fade a bit. They still controlled the game, but the scoring opportunities were much fewer. But they slowly returned to form and, by the 60th minute, the Hibs were in complete control and putting extreme pressure on the SYSL defense. In the 68th minute, Joey stole the ball from a defender at the top of the box and shot it past the keeper. SYSL were all but deflated by then and the Hibs put on a real show to finish off the game, creating multiple scoring chances in the last 2 minutes. Brian's shot hit both posts without going in and several other close-range shots and headers missed the mark. Gabriel got very light work in the net for the shutout.

Goals
     Joey(2), Josh

Goalkeeper
     Gabriel: 2 shots, 0 goals, 100%

The Hibs celebrated their 100th overall game in style by dominating the Goldsboro Sting to record their second straight shutout and up their record to 2-0. The Hibs opened the game by moving the ball sharply and driving up the wings. In the 6th minute, Gabriel pushed the ball across the top of the box where Evan cranked it into the top corner to open the scoring. But the Sting wouldn’t lie down and fought back in the middle of the field, keeping the Hibs away from any real scoring chances. The Hibs still moved the ball around well, but the Sting generated some long runs of their own that caught the defense off guard. At this point, it was still a fairly even, back-and-forth game.

In the 24th minute, Will played a nice thru ball that sprung Evan behind the defense. He finished that one off for his second of the game. Eight minutes later, Gerald played a nice ball to Jake at the top of the box and he scooted it past the Sting keeper for the 3-0 halftime lead.

The second half was totally dominated by the Hibs. They started quickly, and within the first minute, Colin scooped up a misplayed ball and buried it in the back of the net from 25 yards out. The Sting had difficulty getting the ball out of their own end and rarely crossed the mid-field line. Gabriel, Gerald, Josh, and Juan played stiff defense to thwart any possible attack by the Sting. In the 48th minute, Evan played a deep, wide ball for Jake who caught the Sting keeper out of position and lofted a shot over his head into the net. JD closed out the scoring with a 25-yard blast from another misplayed ball. Graham only touched the ball a few times for the shutout as the Sting never really threatened to score.

Goals
     Evan(2), Jake(2), Colin, JD

Goalkeeper
     Graham: 0 shots, 0 GA, 100%

The Hibs kept their win streak alive and upped their regular season record to 3-0 with a 2-1 victory over the Oxford Strike. Although the Hibs had never played the Strike before, they knew they would be tested based on the Strike beating them out for second place via tiebreakers in the FVAA Presidential Classic tournament.

The Hibs started strong and dictated the pace for much of the first half. Buzz controlled the flow of the game in the middle while Greg, JD, and Juan shut down the Strike attack. Quick passing and movement by the Hibs were the keys to maintaining possession and keeping pressure on the Strike defense. The constant attack paid off in the 10th minute when Gerald cranked a 25-yard shot to the upper left corner that the keeper had no chance on. The Hibs maintained the pressure and Buzz cranked a 20-yard rocket past the keeper in the 18th minute. The Strike were able to weather the storm for the rest of the first half.

The second half was a different story as the Hibs came out a little flat and found themselves struggling to get the ball out of their own defensive end. In the 38th minute, the Strike banged a free kick home to get within 1. The Strike kept the pressure up, but the Hibs' defense would not give in. As the Strike pressed hard for the game-tying goal, the Hibs' transition game cranked up and they got a few opportunities of their own. As the half wore on, the Hibs settled down and the rest of the game was played evenly in the middle of the field, but they made good on their opportunity to show who really deserved second place in that tournament.

Goals
     Gerald, Buzz

Goalkeeper
     Gabriel: 8 shots, 1 GA, 87.5%

Goals

Goalkeeper

Goals

Goalkeeper

After a 4-week hiatus, the Hibs took the field against the Sanford Alliance and picked up right where they left off. The Hibs controlled the pace of the game, but had some difficulty working within the confines of the small field. In the 6th minute, Jake W. laid a free kick into the box and several Hibs crashed the net. Joey got his foot on the rebound to put the Hibs on the board. The Hibs continued to press and kept their opponent pinned in their own end. The Alliance were reduced to running onto some long balls cleared out of their defensive 3rd. But that didn't get them any result.

In the 21st minute, Jake S. lofted a 35-yard free kick under the crossbar to give the Hibs some breathing room. But the Alliance got determined and made good on a quick attack to get one back. The Hibs shook that off and quickly got back to a 2-goal lead in the 26th minute after Evan worked a fantastic one-two passing sequence with Joey to get behind the Alliance defense. In the 34th minute, Joey got his second assist off a drop ball that went to Will. He buried his shot to give the Hibs a 4-1 lead at the half.

The Hibs continued to dominate the middle of the field in the second half and continually turned back the Alliance attack. The Hibs had several scoring chances, but it wasn't until the 58th minute that they connected. Jake W. made a long run down the right wing and crossed the ball through the middle of the goal box. Joey was there to tuck it away. Two minutes later, Jake W. lofted a ball over the Alliance defense and Josh ran onto it and battled the defense and goalie until the ball was in the back of the net.

Juan and Gabriel lead a Hibs' defense that didn't allow a shot on goal for the entire 2nd half, giving JD an easy time in the net.

Goals
      Joey(2), Evan, Jake S., Josh, Will

Goalkeeper
      JD: 2 shots, 1 GA, 50.0%

The Hibs remained undefeated by winning a physical game that included verbal warnings from the referee, three yellow cards, and 2 red cards. The Gunners made it clear from the beginning that they were going to try and use their size advantage to intimidate the Hibs. But, they went too far early on and a Gunner received a yellow card about 10 minutes into the game for intentionally throwing a Hibs player to the ground.

The game was fairly even, but the Gunners had several scoring chances that JD was able to turn away. As the half wore on, the Gunners became more frustrated and the physical play escalated. The referee would have none of it and awarded another Gunner a yellow card for an overly aggressive tackle from behind. The Hibs took advantage of the Gunners’ frustration and kept them pinned in their own defensive end for the last 10 minutes of the half, resulting in several corner kicks that weren’t converted.

The second half saw more of the same type of play and the referee provided verbal warnings to Gunners and Hibs alike for the grabbing and pushing. Finally, in the 42nd minute, Jake W. took a quick throw-in from midfield that Zack ran onto down the line. He drove to the Gunner’s defense and pushed the ball across to Gabriel running up on the play. Gabriel took the ball to just inside the 18 and beat the keeper clean to break the ice.

The Gunners pushed up 9 players after that to try and get the equalizer. The Hibs took advantage and created several scoring chances with their counter-attack. Evan, Buzz, and Brian worked hard for the 2-goal lead, but the finish just wasn’t there. Graham replaced JD in goal in the 58th minute after he was injured by a Gunners player going hard for a 50-50 ball. The Gunners had several chances ring off the post and 2 balls cleared off the line as they attacked relentlessly for the last ten minutes of the game.

Their frustration caught up with them and a Gunners player that received a yellow card in the first half was overly aggressive again and received a red card from the referee. Some profanity from another Gunners player protesting the call resulted in his red card as well. Down two players with a few minutes remaining, the Gunners did everything they could to keep possession and get the equalizer. A retaliation foul by a Hibs player resulted in a yellow card just before the final whistle, ending a tough, physical battle that could have gone either way.

Goals
Gabriel

Goalkeeper
JD: 9 shots, 0 GA, 100%
Graham: 1 shot, 0 GA, 100%

Sometimes you can look at a game and think the ref had a dramatic impact on the outcome. Most of the time you'd be wrong. But, for this game, it really seemed that the non-confident ref was influenced by the ranting of the opposing coach. Several calls were changed and a late, questionable penalty kick for the opponents was enough to think maybe the ref had a real impact on the game. But, on the other hand, the Hibs certainly had several chances to put this game away, but couldn't find the mark. That was the lesson the players needed to take away from this experience ... never let the ref decide a game.

The game was very even from the start and played mostly in the middle of the field. In the 8th minute, Jake Stone turned the tide with a beautiful switch to Jake Wimberley. He collected the ball and hit Evan in stride. Evan pushed the ball wide of his defender and cranked a shot to the far post.

The Arsenal turned up the heat, and several awesome saves by Graham in the goal kept them off the board. But, in the 20th minute, a long shot beat Graham for the tie. It didn't take long for the Hibs to respond. In the 23rd minute, Joey collected a cleared ball and drove thru the Arsenal defense on the left side. His long cross went thru the box to the far post, where Jake Stone banged it home for the 2-1 lead. The Arsenal responded with a quick goal after halftime.

The 2-2 score stood for almost 20 more minutes until, in the 57th minute, Jake Wimberley collected Brian's clearing ball and beat several Arsenal defenders and the keeper to put the Hibs up again. The Arsenal threw everything they had a the Hibs defense, but were turned away time after time.

Then, with 2 minutes left to play, Gabriel and an Arsenal attacker got their feet tangled when they started to slow down after a long ball had already gone out for a goal kick. The ref called a penalty shot for the Arsenal that they made good on for the tie. Before that play though, the Hibs had 2 or 3 very good scoring opportunities, and a chance to get at least a 2-goal lead. So, by not finishing those chances, the questionable penalty shot impacted the game.

Goals
     Evan, Jake Stone, Jake Wimberley

Goalkeeper
     Graham: 11 shots, 3 GA, 72.7%

The last game of the season didn't start out well for the Hibs, as their home field hadn't been mowed and was unplayable. But, by the end of the game, at a different venue, they had completed an undefeated season.

The grass was a bit tall at this other field as well, which slowed the Hibs down a bit. But the Ambush liked to play the long ball and created a few opportunities early in the game. Once the Hibs' defense stiffened, they started controlling the flow of the game. Jake Stone opened the scoring in the 20th minute when he collected Juan's long free-kick and blasted it into the back of the net.

In the 27th minute, Evan jumped onto a badly cleared ball and crammed it through the Ambush keeper's legs for the 2-0 halftime lead. Although the Hibs had dominated for 35 minutes, they had some difficulty finishing their chances and let the Ambush defense clear some balls out.

It didn't take them long to put the game away in the second half though. In the 39th minute, Jake Wimberley's long throw went to the front of the net where Zack tapped it through to Buzz. He cranked that one home to expand the Hibs' lead. Less than a minute later, Gerald's long clear sprung Zack and he fought off a defender enroute to blasting it home.

The Hibs continued to dominate the game. Juan, Josh, Graham, and Greg played stiff defense to give Gabriel an easy time in the net. Jake Wimberley finished off the scoring in the 64th minute when he worked a one-two with Joey and got behind the Ambush defense. The Hibs did a nice job dominating a weaker opponent and shut down their playmakers, especially in the second half. The 5-0 win gave the Hibs their first undefeated regular season with a 6-0-1 record.

Goals
Buzz, Evan, Zack, Jake S., Jake W.

Goalkeeper
JD: 4 shots, 0 GA, 100%
Gabriel: 0 shots, 0 GA, 100%

The Hibs opened this year's tournament against a Division 2 Classic team. The Jammers had already won their first game in the morning and now faced a fresh Hibs team. The Jammers came out strong and dictated the pace early. But JD, Graham, Josh, and Greg played stiff defense to keep the Jammers out of the net. As the first half wore on, the Hibs slowly began turning the tide as Brian, Will, Colin, and Buzz controlled the middle of the field and tried to create chances for the forwards. The Jammers' defense was up to the task.

The second half was more of the same and the game was played primarily between the 18's. The Hibs had several scoring chances, but came up short, and Gabriel was stellar in the net to keep the Jammers off the scoreboard. The game ended in a 0-0 tie, which really shows how evenly matched the teams were.

Goals
    None

Goalkeeper
     Gabriel: 4 shots, 0 GA, 100%

The Hibs faced a very familiar opponent for their second game of the day. The Arsenal show up on the Hibs' schedule every season and, even though they never beat the Hibs, every game seemed to get closer and closer, the last one ending in a tie. With the wind at their back, the Arsenal played their brand of long ball, but it was ineffective as the wind carried the ball too far most times. The Hibs tried to control the game on the ground, but the Arsenal were physical on defense and disrupted passing lanes, making it difficult for them to keep up any steady pressure. But, in the 32nd minute, Jake worked hard on the left side to get through several Arsenal defenders and send the ball across the box. Zack ran onto it and beat the keeper to put the Hibs up at the half.

With the wind at their backs, the Hibs seemed confident that the Arsenal wouldn't be able to create chances with the long ball. But, they were still able to push the ball up the field and create problems for the Hibs defense. In the 38th minute, a questionable call resulted in a penalty shot for the Arsenal, which tied the game. Brian, Buzz, Colin, and Greg tried to turn the tide in the middle of the field, but the Arsenal were relentless attacking the ball. The frustrated Hibs just couldn't get anything going.

In the 57th minute, an Arsenal attacker drove down the right side of the field and crossed the ball into the box. As JD came out to cut off the cross, a Hibs defender accidentally knocked it into the goal to give the Arsenal the 2-1 lead. The Hibs pressed with wave after wave of attackers, but couldn't get the equalizer, giving the Arsenal their first victory over the Hibs in 9 tries.

Going into this game, the Hibs had a chance to win their group with either a 1-0 shutout or a 2-goal victory. But, the loss put them at the bottom of the 3-team group and left with nothing to play for on Sunday except their pride.

Goals
     Zack

Goalkeeper
     JD: 11 shots, 2 goals, 83.0%

Just playing for pride is sometimes hard to do, but if the Hibs got back to playing together and as a team, they could be successful in this game. The Hibs played a terrific possession game from the onset and dictated the pace of the game. But, once or twice they got caught napping and Gabriel was forced to make some great saves. They settled down and created several scoring chances, but came up empty each time. In the 27th minute, the Hurricanes used the wind to push the ball forward and break an attacker through the Hibs defense. He put the ball into the net for the 1-0 halftime lead.

The second half was all Hibs as they used the wind to their advantage to keep the Hurricanes penned into their own end of the field. They got the goal back in the 41st minute when Buzz drove down the right side, cut back through some defenders, and crossed the ball along the top of the box. Brian's 20-yard rocket found the top corner of the net for the tie. The Hibs continued to press on the attack while JD, Juan, Greg and Josh turned the Hurricanes back at midfield. In the 52nd minute, Will drove deep on the right side and dropped the ball back to the corner of the 18 yard box. Evan was there to crank the ball to the far post to give the Hibs the lead for good.

The Hibs got back to their brand of soccer and totally controlled the pace of the game. Their passing was crisp and the movement off the ball created lots of space for them to do their work. In a weekend of ups and downs, it was good to end on an up.

Goals
     Brian, Evan

Goalkeeper
      Gabriel: 8 shots, 1 GA, 87.5%