On a balmy Monday afternoon on Fitch Field, the boys’ soccer team punched their ticket to the PSAA Championship for the third time in four years with a 7-0 semifinal win over Long Island Lutheran.

The Bears struck early when James Fay notched a goal in the first five minutes, but the teams played even soccer from there until 3:44 remained in the half. In need of an offensive spark, Enoch Guo stepped up and rifled a shot from the left side to double the Blue & White lead. Then, with just 3.3 seconds left, Guo struck again from the left side, blasting a shot between the keeper’s legs to give the Brook a commanding 3-0 lead at the half.

At the half, coach Tim Beirne reminded the team that though they held a three-goal edge, they had not played their brand of soccer over the first 40 minutes. “Excellence is the standard. Nothing else is acceptable.” The Bears responded when Fay found the net again at the 33:21 mark on a pass from Guo. Lee Maeba put home his own rebound at 28:41 to give the Brook a 5-0 advantage. The Bears cemented the victory with a pair of goals in the final five minutes when Joe Spreckels headed home a brilliant corner kick from Jadon Sun and David Chang netted a goal less than 30 seconds later. Lem Kutame registered his fifth clean sheet of the season between the posts.

The win not only gave the Bears a return trip to the finals, but marked their ninth straight home victory against league opponents and their seventh straight win over LuHi.

The team takes the field today against #3 Portledge in the PSAA Championship at Cantiague Park.

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