Sometimes it takes a lead by the opposing team to serve as motivation to take control, as was the case with the Liberty Hurricanes in their 2-1 boys soccer victory over Easton last Friday at Liberty.

“After their goal, we kind of woke up a little bit, and once we settled in and started moving the ball the way we want to, they backed off and started to drop in their end, and that allowed us to gain some confidence to move forward,” said Liberty head coach Jason Horvath.

Hurricane forward Kaique Durte-Costa took a shot high enough to roll off the fingertips of Easton goalie Daniel Keane for the equalizer in the 16th minute.

In the second half, Liberty goalkeeper Jonny Smith took over for Owen Cassel and made two consecutive saves in the opening minutes.

“Obviously there’s pressure going into the second half of the game, but our back line played a great game,” Smith said. “Our outside backs, center backs moved the ball great.”

Also helping out on defense was forward Jacksen Jobes who tangled with Easton’s Jacob Borluca frequently enough to keep the Red Rover forward from getting off a shot.

“Jacksen’s got a bunch of energy, and he’s got some moxie to him, and he worked really hard today,” said Coach Horvath. “I’m proud of the way he played.”

Durte-Costa scored the game winner in the 48th minute that sailed into the right side of the net from about 18 yards.

“We were having a really tight game and we wanted it, so it’s a great feeling,” he said. “[Coach Horvath] said, ‘Keep going. We were having a great game. Take the opportunities.’”

With plenty of time left in the match, Horvath saw plenty of opportunities for the Hurricanes.

“After we scored the second goal, I would’ve liked to see us keep going forward. We had chances, but we need to get that third one. I hate being up, 2-1,” Horvath said. “They have more fight than I think they realized. They have more ability than they realized, I think, and now, even with the (1-0) loss to Emmaus, I saw the team take the next step.”

The Becahi boys are 0-4 so far, dropping games to Notre Dame, Pocono East, Parkland and Nazareth.

The Freedom boys are 2-1 having lost to Pleasant Valley while beating Stroudsburg and Allen.