CONCORD, Mass. - It was a tale of two halves as Lawrence Academy battled back from a 2-0 deficit to earn a 2-2 draw in a highly-anticipated matchup of two teams off to great starts in Independent School League (ISL) boys soccer. 

Lawrence had some strong performances across the different sectors, as Jack Hawgood battled in the back, Tommy Shelvey worked the hardest in the midfield, and Henry Senyo was threatening in the final third. 

Billy Zuze (Balatyre, Malawi) was the standout performer for Middlesex, as he kept the dangerous Senyo at bay time and again throughout the match.

Middlesex got on the board just five minutes in when Noah Helfgott (London, England) found the side net from distance. 

Less than ten minutes later the advantage was doubled, as Mahad Garad (Chestnut Hill, Mass.) headed home from close range on a pinpoint service from Adriano Valmora (Montreal, Quebec). 

Matt Oh (Cresskill, N.J.) also worked hard and had a great finish disallowed in the first half. 

However, Middlesex was guilty of some mental errors in the first half and in the second half the home side suffered the effects of mental and physical fatigue and presented with little energy in the face of an inspired Spartan squad. 

Shelvey was the first to strike back when he was found unmarked in front of goal, and the comeback was completed in the 92nd minute on the back post from one of many set pieces earned by Lawrence in the second half. 

It was a case of one team putting its foot on the gas and the other team being completely out of gas. Credit to the spirit shown by Lawrence to keep pushing for a share of the points, as they certainly deserved their celebrations at the final whistle for their late equalizer.