Hawken Boys Soccer coach Vlad Muresan has developed quite an appreciation for 1-0 victories.
His Hawks are giving him plenty of opportunities to enjoy them.
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Brandon Shaw scored in the 44th minute, and Hawken made the goal stand Tuesday night, blanking Chagrin Falls Boys Soccer, 1-0, at Walton Stadium for its fifth consecutive shutout and fourth straight victory by an identical 1-0 score.
“There’s not a coach in America that likes a 1-0 win more than me, because it shows that you are solid defensively,” Muresan said. “You can grind results out. You can suffer, and we did that tonight. And this was the first game since the Bay game where we had our squad fully healthy again, so that gives me good hope for the future.”
The victory improved Hawken to 8-0-1 overall while maintaining its perfect 2-0 record in the Chagrin Valley Conference Chagrin Division.
Chagrin Falls fell to 6-2 overall but remains unbeaten at 3-0 in the Valley Division. Tuesday’s matchup was a CVC crossover and did not count toward either team’s division record.
The game brought together two teams that had been dominating opponents in different ways.
Chagrin Falls entered having scored 23 goals in its previous five reported victories, including an 8-0 win over Crestwood one week earlier. The Tigers also had recorded shutouts in their previous four reported wins.
Hawken countered with a defense that hadn’t surrendered a goal since a 1-1 tie at Bay on Aug. 22.
Something had to give.
For nearly 44 minutes, neither side did.
The two teams played to a scoreless first half before the Hawks finally created the game’s decisive opportunity shortly after the break.
Tristan Boseman threaded a pass through to Shaw, who finished it to give Hawken a 1-0 advantage.
That was enough.
The Hawks protected the lead the rest of the way, extending a remarkable defensive stretch that began with a 4-0 victory over South on Aug. 25.
Hawken followed with 1-0 victories over St. Edward, Orange and University School before handing Chagrin Falls the same result Tuesday.
The Hawks have outscored those five opponents, 8-0.
“Tonight, we knew it was going to be a tough game. It’s always tough against Chagrin,” Muresan said. “They were ranked No. 2 in Division IV, so we wanted to test ourselves against a good side, and now the players know we have a target on our back a little bit. It’s difficult to get to the top, but it’s even more difficult to stay at the top.”
Chagrin Falls presented a particularly difficult test because of how many different players have contributed offensively this season.
The Tigers graduated plenty of experience from last year’s regional runner-up team but returned seven players from that squad and have continued to receive production from throughout their lineup.
“If you look at our scoring, it is split up quite a bit,” Chagrin Falls coach Brian McKenna said. “There’s not just one person who’s going to go out there and put the ball in the net. There’s several, and we like that we can count on so many. Although we couldn’t get in the net tonight, we know several have that ability.”
Tuesday marked just the second time in Chagrin Falls’ reported games this season that the Tigers were held scoreless.
Their other shutout loss was a 1-0 setback at Kenston on Aug. 20.
Since then, Chagrin Falls had responded with reported victories over Lutheran West, West Geauga, Beachwood, Kirtland and Crestwood before running into Hawken’s stingy defense.
McKenna nevertheless came away encouraged by how his Tigers competed against one of the area’s unbeaten teams.
“This certainly is a game that gets us ready for the postseason,” McKenna said. “They played really well and have a lot of speed and were very effective.
“On the other hand, I felt our team played with a lot of energy and moved the ball around quite a bit. We had a couple of opportunities there; we just couldn’t finish, but on another night, a couple of those opportunities may end up in goals. I really was not disappointed in the least with our guys. We knew it was going to be a good game, and we saw it from both teams.”
Both teams now return their attention to their respective division races.
Hawken is one of two teams still unbeaten in Chagrin Division play, joining 3-0 West Geauga. Chagrin Falls is 3-0 in the Valley Division, just behind Rootstown’s 3-0-1 mark.
The Tigers have a quick turnaround with a road game at Orange on Thursday, Sept. 17.
Hawken gets a few extra days before hosting Howland on Saturday, Sept. 19.
For the Hawks, the challenge will be continuing a defensive run that has turned one-goal leads into victories with remarkable regularity.
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