Reserve Power Helps Boost Splash to Win
ANAHEIM — Before stepping on the field Wednesday night, Brian Irvin admitted he was nervous.
One of three players given the task of filling in for three injured starters, Irvin sparked the Splash to an 8-4 victory over Arizona in front of an announced crowd of 6,057 at the Pond.
Player/Coach Dale Ervine said before the game the play of Irvin and Mathew West, both midfielders, and defender Matt West would be critical to the outcome.
Irvin had three assists, Davis had a goal and West had an important clear--by halftime.
That effort wasn’t lost on their teammates as the Splash (3-2) won its second game in a row. The Sandsharks fell to 1-4.
Irvin’s crossing pass to Doug Neely tied the score, 1-1, almost five minutes into the game. It was Irvin, not Neely, who was mobbed by teammates.
“It meant a lot because I look up to all my teammates,” Irvin said. “During practice, they’re always telling me what I’m doing wrong. I like working hard and rewarding them.”
Irvin followed with another pass to Davis, who one-touched an off-balance left-footer past Scott Hileman. Davis celebrated his second professional goal in his fourth professional game by jumping on the glass, and a little more than two minutes later, Bernie Lilavois scored the first of his three consecutive goals.
Irvin, who played at UCLA, Davis (Cal State Northridge) and West (UC Santa Barbara) had little professional experience before this season--Davis played one game last year for theSplash.
Three Splash starters--midfielders Kenny Hesse (knee), all-star Danny Barber (hamstring) and Paul McDonnell (ankle)--have combined to miss nine full games through the team’s first five games; Barber and Hesse suffered first-quarter injuries. Hesse is out for the season.
Lilavois said it was unlikely the Splash could have played any better with the starters in the lineup.
“Since we were missing some of the bigger-name players, we needed to overcome that with our work rate,” Lilavois said. “From the opening whistle, the energy was there.”
Neely, who moved from defender to midfield to accommodate the lineup changes, agreed.
“When [a reserve] tries to make a point,” he said, “they do play with a lot of abandon.”
The Splash led, 4-1, after one quarter, 4-2 at halftime. Ervine’s two goals 53 seconds apart gave the Splash a 7-2 lead 33 seconds into the fourth quarter. P.J. Polowski added an empty-net goal in the final minute.
Arizona outshot the Splash, 50-30, but Ruben Fernandez came through with 26 saves.
Lilavois has scored at least two points in each of five games, and his eight goals this season are sixth-best in the league.
