The boys soccer season kicked off Wednesday night with a tough loss against the experienced and skilled varsity Aragon team. The game started off well for Aragon’s strikers, who bullied the smaller Burlingame backs in their fast breaks throughout the game. Aragon forward Roman Misner netted a goal 10 minutes into the match and set the tone for the rest of the game. Despite controlling the ball for most of the first half, Burlingame’s offense was stunted by lazy passes, untimely miscues and the stronger Aragon defenders who were able to push the ball to the edge of the field, routinely putting Burlingame wings between a rock and a hard place.

Through the second half of the game, Aragon came within inches of scoring several times, only to be stopped by the heroics of keeper Jack Parker. Burlingame defender Ian Jackson was another bright spot, routinely stopping strikers standing well over five inches taller than him through intelligent interjections between passing lanes and gritty attacks on Aragons’ ball handlers.

Ultimately, Aragon’s barrages paid off in the 80th minute as midfielder Ajay Paramasivan snuck a goal past the Burlingame defense. Paramasivan charged towards the sideline in celebration after putting the Dons up 2-0, and was swarmed by the exuberant Aragon bench. 

Though the game was a tough loss for the Burlingame squad, Burlingame coach Anthony Dimech was glad to see the team finally get out and play after a year-long hiatus.

“I had no idea what to expect today,” Dimech said. “We didn’t have any scrimmages or preseason games.”

The Burlingame team was also missing five players, and Dimech hopes those players will contribute significant roles to the team in coming games.

“They were just a little hungrier and a little more eager to play,” Dimech said. “We just gotta play better.”