SHELBY – Since Joe Gilbert took over the Hart boys soccer program in 2020, the Pirates have yet to beat their rival Shelby. Frustration was both visible and audible from the Pirates’ sideline, Monday, Sept. 30, as yet again, Shelby found a way to best Hart, this time by a 2-1 score.
“I think it’s just the rivalry,” Shelby Head Coach Damian Gonzalez said. “We played our best game by far tonight. Hart is a good team and I have a lot of respect for their play in the midfield and their attacking component. We showed what we’re capable of, now we just have to bring that same level every single game.”
Over the last five years, Hart has owned a combined 31-47-15 overall record heading into conference meetings with Shelby, while the Tigers stood at 33-33-14. In 2021, the teams faced off twice in the same year with Shelby winning both.
Entering Monday’s game, Hart owned an 8-7 overall record while Shelby sat at 3-11-2, having won just two games since late August. The expectation was that the Pirates would find a way to do what they hadn’t done over the last five seasons and claim victory.
Shelby had a game plan heading in and, for the first few minutes, executed it to perfection. Showing speed and aggression from the early going, the Tigers pressured Hart in the midfield, forcing errant passes and intercepting balls that kept possession firmly in Hart’s defensive territory.
That plan was flipped on its head with 31:10 remaining in the first half when Hart found a transition breakaway down the right sideline. The Pirates first real opportunity in front of Shelby’s net turned into points as junior Adrian Belmares sent a goal past Shelby freshman keeper Josh Vega to put Hart in front, 1-0.
“(Hart) is fast and aggressive. Fortunately, I know them pretty well,” Gonzalez said. “We had a gameplan going in and I thought we executed it really well. Transition was what I was scared about, and that’s where they got their one and only goal. Their speed on the wings forced us to adjust and I thought we did that well.”
Gonzalez had seen the talent of Hart’s roster first hand. Before taking the head coaching gig at Shelby, he was an assistant coach under Gilbert, specializing in training keepers. A bit of insider information doesn’t hurt when playing a rival and that showed as Shelby recovered from an early deficit.
“It’s so tough because I love the players over there (on Hart’s team). I want them to do great things this year because I was coaching them from November to May,” Gonzalez said. “I’ve been a part of that process so I know everything they’ve been through. I tried not to think about it all day at work, but as soon as I got out of work, the realization hit that we were really about to square off.”
Though both teams found ways to push the ball into scoring position at different times in the first half, neither were able to capitalize. The second half saw a mad scramble up and down the field as each team jockeyed for position and the opportunity to put points on the board.
Shelby was finally able to find the back of the net with 29:01 remaining in the game on a shot by senior Venancio Cadena Arvizu. With a 1-1 tie, the Tigers turned up the intensity and started giving Hart a lot of trouble.
For Hart, it was senior defenseman Carter Ramseyer that allowed the Pirates to thwart most of Shelby’s attempts to break through. Ramseyer was responsible for numerous stops on defense, clearing balls left and right and putting Shelby’s strikers back on their heels.
“(Carter) is a work horse and an absolute animal. We say that his dad probably built him in a lab in their basement,” Gilbert said. “We pin our entire defense on him because we’re not as fast on the outside. He can’t do it all though.”
Ramseyer couldn’t stop Shelby every time, but on opposing runs in the second half where he wasn’t in position to make a play, junior keeper Miguel Escamilla made up for it.
Escamilla did as much as humanly possible, recording seven saves, cutting off 11 through balls and claiming four crosses. One particular play stood out though. In a 1-on-1 situation with Shelby junior Alex Dealmonte, Escamilla came out and stood his ground. Dealmonte fired a shot to the right post and watched it sail towards the net, only for Escamilla to deflect it off the fingertips with his arm outstretched.
“(That save) was insane. Miguel should be an All-District keeper. We’re looking for him to be in that top three and be in the mix,” Gilbert said. “It’s going to be a talking point (at the end of the year) that he let in a lot of goals, but you have to look at our defense in front of him. We’re not the most athletic team by any means. (Escamilla’s) effort and athletic ability are tremendous. It’s crazy what he’s able to do.”
It took a while, but the 1-1 stalemate was finally broken with just over two minutes remaining in the game.
Shelby junior Andrew Hayes dribbled through Hart’s defense and placed a pass perfectly to Dealmonte. This time, Dealmonte finished in front of Escamilla, putting Shelby on top for good.
“This is the first time we’ve come back from a deficit all season,” Gonzalez said. “Having that happen this late in the year, I’m incredibly impressed and proud of our resilience. This’ll be a good learning point going into Districts, knowing that if we go down we’re capable of battling back.”
With the win, Shelby moved to 4-11-2 overall with a 2-7-1 record in the West Michigan Conference (WMC). Hart fell to 8-8 overall and 3-6 in the WMC.
This won’t be the last time the two teams meet in 2024 either. The Pirates are scheduled to host Shelby to start the District tournament Thursday, Oct. 10, this time with much more on the line.
“It’s hard to beat a team twice and that’s what I have to get into their heads,” Gilbert said. “They might have beat us this time, but we’ve got an even more important game coming up and it’s win or go home. Mentality-wise, it’s probably better that we lost this one because now we have a chip on our shoulder.”
“Playing Whitehall and Ludington to finish the year will be good for us,” Gonzalez said. “They’re known for bringing intensity, so if we can match that, it’ll be huge. Both of those games will be good tests heading into Districts. Today was close, but Districts will be even more interesting.”
