Quinn Tanner’s Hat Trick Powers Pierson Past Port Jeff

Even a torrential downpour can’t stop Quinn Tanner.

The Pierson High School senior recorded three goals for the Pierson/Bridgehampton boys soccer team Wednesday, making it look easy as he battled the elements across a 4-1 win over Port Jefferson, the Whalers’ first of the season.

“I try my hardest and do what I can do,” Tanner said following the victory. “My off-the-ball runs and being physical paid off today.”

The senior forward put Pierson (2-3) on the board with 29:24 to go in the first half, and junior goalkeeper Braeden Mott did his job of protecting the lead by making four of his eight saves before Tanner tallied his second of the game at the 13:51 mark. The senior struck the ball low from the left side, sending it just inside the right corner past an unsuspecting Royals’ goalkeeper, who thought the shot was going wide. Unfortunately, as the rain continued to come down and the grass field soaked it up, the ball remained difficult to control. With just under 10 minutes until the break, a shot all but stopped slipped through Mott’s hands to make it a one-goal game, 2-1, at halftime.

“No matter how many times you’ve practiced in the rain, it’s always difficult adjusting to the conditions,” head coach Luis Aguilar said. “But we attacked and defended as a team, communicated and worked well together. The hard work was evident.”

The Whalers, who secured two corner kicks in the game, also picked up three penalty kicks. Tanner had a shot up the middle saved at the 32:04 mark of the second half, but found the netting with a rocket strike from 25 yards out for his third goal of the game at 26:59. Tanner’s final attempt hit the goalkeeper’s hands and ricocheted off the top crossbar, and while senior Jose Gomez was there to pick up a rebound attempt, his shot was also stopped.

“Their communication and linking up their passes was better,” Aguilar said. “They got the ball out wide and back to the middle in order for us to score.”

The Whalers did just that the next two times around, but junior Steven Ponzini and classmate Andrew Wayne’s attempts at a goal were thwarted. Royals (0-6) had two looks of their own, with both shots getting past Mott, but each time junior Wilmer Reyes stepped in to make the save.

The Whalers tallied their final goal off a deflected save, which rolled into a wide-open net to give the game its final score.

“I’m happy with the outcome,” Quinn said. “In the beginning of the season there were a lot of new kids, so we weren’t as comfortable with each other, but I think it’s coming along.

We played the long balls up to me, which was the plan, but hopefully we can possess the ball better in the future. We have a lot of injured players coming back, so I’m excited to see what they can do.”

The head coach said the goal for Quinn, who tweaked his ankle during the contest, and others will be to stay healthy down the stretch. Pierson followed the showing with a 1-0 win on the road at Southold (1-2-1) on Friday, September 15, before dropping a close 1-0 contest to Mattituck (3-1-1) on Monday.

“This feels pretty good after our last two losses,” Aguilar said following the victory at Port Jeff. “It’s a long season, and the guys that were out definitely hurt us. But after the results we’ve had, I think they have a good mentality, and there’s good morale. There’s not much you can do in that situation, and they’ve done a nice job of coming together. You’ve got to work with what you have and keep moving forward.”