A hallmark of John Cari coached led teams over the years at Emmaus has always been on the defensive side of the field.
Heading into their Senior Night matchup vs Nazareth last night at Memorial Field, the Hornets had allowed just four goals on the season while posting 11 shutouts.
With the defense once holding strong limiting the visitors to just a pair of shots on goal, Emmaus added another clean sheet to its resume as they blanked Nazareth 2-0.
“I was very proud of the effort tonight,” said head coach John Cari following the match. “I thought we controlled the game from start to finish. We really moved the ball fairly well and we didn’t necessarily capitalize on all of our opportunities, but I thought we controlled the game and the effort.”
“Defensively I think we’re very underrated, only letting up four goals. In the past, we’ve been known for having a history of outstanding backs in players like Brayden Dang and Jaeden Amato. We don’t necessarily have that right now. It’s a new-look group from last year besides Ben Grossi and Rio Johnson but they just keep posting shutouts and doing their job.”
Senior Canyon Reinhardt wound up scoring the only goal the Hornets would need on the night as he tallied his team-leading 12th of the season in the 32nd minute as Emmaus remained unbeaten, improving to 13-0-2 in the EPC and 14-0-2 overall. Reinhardt was named the Player of The Game on the LIVE broadcast on The Eastern Pa. Sports Network.
Senior Robbie Tumblin added a big insurance goal, his 2nd of the season, in the 52nd minute to give the Hornets a 2-0 lead.
In the contest, Emmaus outshot Nazareth 7-2 with the Hornets holding a 5-0 advantage in corners. Seniors Will Peck and Gavin Yartymyk split time in goal and combined on the shutout, the 12th of the season.
The Blue Eagles, who were playing without their two top scorers due to injury – seniors Alex McKinney and Luca Noto – fell to 10-4-1 in the EPC and 10-5-1 overall with the loss. Nazareth has lost eight straight games to Emmaus dating back to the 2020 season.
Prior to the match, Emmaus honored their 11 seniors — Rio Johnson, Caleb Parker, Conner Powell, Canyon Reinhardt, Robbie Tumblin, Logan Armstrong, Andrew Manz, Frank Colosimo, Austen Breisch, Gavin Yartymyk and Will Peck.
“This has been one of the most fun groups I’ve ever had the opportunity to coach,” said Cari. “I love coming to practice every day. Their attitudes are great, and they want to get better. They work really hard so I’m always very pleased for every single one of them to get opportunities to find success on the field. It was a great senior night for all of them.”
Emmaus will close out the week on Saturday at 3 p.m. as they travel to BASD Stadium to take on Liberty (12-2-1 EPC/12-3-1 overall).
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Emmaus 2, Nazareth 0
Naz – 0-0 – 0
Em – 1-1- 2
Scoring:
Em – Canyon Reinhardt 32′ (assist Brennan Stack)
Em – Robbie Tumblin 52′
SOG – Naz 2, Em 7
Corners – Naz 0, Em 5
Saves – Naz (Owen Moyer, 5), Em (Will Peck, 1; Gavin Yartymyk, 1)