Posted Friday, October 02, 2009 by Written byJ.B. Cozens;Joe Davey photo

Girls soccer: Indians nip Somers in overtime

Written by J.B. Cozens
Friday, 02 October 2009 11:00

 

Clare Cirillo’s goal with two minutes left in the first overtime period gave the John Jay girls soccer team a 1-0 win at Somers on Wednesday, in the Indians’ league opener.

 

The Indians (6-2-1) play Greeley tonight (7) as part of Homecoming weekend activity.

Coach Paul Smith said Wednesday’s win was a typical John Jay-Somers affair, and the kind of tight contest the Indians can expect against its other league opponents, Greeley and Fox Lane.

“In our league, every one of our games is going to be like this,” he said. “The teams are just that even this year. It’s a matter of who’s going to make the big saves and who’s going to come up with the goal when they have the opportunity.”

On Wednesday, that opportunity came for John Jay late in the first overtime, when forward Nicole Silenok threaded a ball through the defense to outside midfielder Clare Cirillo, making a run. Cirillo got behind the defense and beat the Somers’ goalie on a one-on-one situation.

“Clare waited for their keeper to come out a little and then struck a hard ball right by her,” said Smith, who also praised Silenok for making the pass that set up the goal.

“Nicole up front continues to draw attention to herself and has really been distributing the ball well up there,” he said.

John Jay came out strong and controlled the early portion of the game, but the Tuskers evened things out and had the better of the play as the first half wore on.

The action continued to be back and forth in the second half, despite the fact that John Jay lost All-Section center midfielder Zoe Boyd early in the half due to back pain. Sophomore Callie Dietrick and freshman Hannah Wear, as they’ve done all season, did an effective job filling in at center midfield, Smith said.

Somers had good pressure, but its shots were generally from the outside, he said. The John Jay defense continued to shine, producing its fifth shutout of the season. The Indians have allowed only four goals in nine games.

Once again, the team’s three backs — Emily Johnston, Natasha Cucullo and Lauren Hafkemeyer — did an efficient job of clearing balls and forcing outside shots, while goalie Kelly Sposato (13 saves) did a solid job not only handling the shots but denying the Tuskers any second chances.

“Kelly probably had her busiest game in goal, and she made a lot of saves with people around her,” said Smith.

“It was a big win,” he continued. “It showed that we’re gelling as a team.”

Somers (4-4) got 11 saves in goal from its keeper.