SOMERS, N.Y. - On Monday, Oct. 5, Somers welcomed Fox Lane to the high school, and as always, the most likely path to victory was to score first. Attackers, centers and wings are always handy, but they are not necessarily the primary drivers.
Ashley Kuchinsky scored on a corner, and that had Angie Giron explaining the kinetics.
“A defender scoring really brings up the energy,” she said, and six more goals in a 7-0 victory proved the point.
Of course, Kuchinsky had help. Bridget Leitner broke into the open on the right and forced the corner, with Kuchinsky persisting on the ensuing opportunity.
“I didn’t get it on the first touch, but I continued and scored it,” said the senior.
Up 1-0 at 38:49, Somers kept up the pressure. Caitlin Fitts, Natalie D’Ippolito and Kate Hanford put shots on goal, but Aurora Riley’s dribbling made the most noise. Moving into space in the middle, Riley brought cheers from the crowd with her nifty footwork. Unfortunately, those cheers were deadened when her shot rang off the football crossbar at 28:12.
The Somers crowd was soon rewarded for its patience, though, and Kuchinsky was the impetus again. She stopped a Fox Lane advance, got the ball ahead, and Giron and Amelia Marcus took it from there.
Giron got free in the corner, and her pass to Marcus had the Foxes scrambling. The freshman was pulled down, giving Giron the opportunity to cash in on something she loves.
“I really love taking penalty shots,” said Giron, who converted from five yards out at 22:43.
Seven minutes later, the duo was back in the act. Giron passed inside to Marcus, and the subsequent goal was just part of their shared ESP.
“We have communication without having to communicate,” a coy Giron said.
Maeve Cleary, on the other hand, stayed in her own head at 10:42. The ball came in the direction of the senior, but the Fox Lane goalie got there first. The goaltender’s clearance was not so advantageous, though.
“She cleared straight to me,” said the Tusker. “I kicked it long, because the goal was empty.”
The ball went in untouched, bringing the Somers crowd to its feet for a player who is not usually on the attack.
“That was my first varsity goal,” beamed the midfielder, who had been moved to forward.
On to the second half, Giron and Marcus connected for a third time at 34:22.
“We have a great connection during practice,” said Marcus. “We make a lot of jokes, so it flows when you have a good friendship.”
Marcus added a third goal for the final tally, and that had the game’s first goal scorer offering the summation.
“When we all play the right way, we’re a very good team,” concluded Kuchinsky.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here