In one of the great playoff matches of the 2010 WCAC Tournament, host Elizabeth Seton held off a determined St. John's XI throughout 100 scoreless minutes before prevailing 8-7 in penalty kicks to advance to the semi-finals.
Seton (10-6-2) entered the match as the third seed and had struggled during the second half of the season to replicate the winning form they produced during the month of September. St. John's (13-8-4) traveled to the 1/4 final with a five-game unbeaten streak - fresh off of a 1-0 victory at McNamara on November 5th.
The much-anticipated match was played over the course of two days at the Bladensburg school due to the suspension of the match following the conclusion of the first, ten-minute overtime period. After conferring with officials from both institutions, the officials decided to abandon the match due to darkness and return for the second overtime on November 10th. The absence of sports lighting at Lonergan Field played a mitigating role in deciding the outcome of the quarterfinal although neither side could find the back of the net as the second overtime portion resumed under warm, sunny skies on November 11th.
"To play a quarterfinal over the course of two days is a bit odd", said SJC Head Coach Colin Lennon. "Neither team benefits from the rest as it breaks the momentum and spirit of playoff soccer, which is both difficult to replicate if and when the match is suspended due to light."
With everything to play for, St. John's displayed heart, passion and focus throughout the 100-minute contest - often equal to or above the efforts of its opponent - with a sea of red tightly united across the compact, natural grass pitch.
"The effort our girls gave was extraordinary", Lennon stated of his team's determined play. "I couldn't ask for more than what they gave today and yesterday. They really played their hearts out and it showed."
Forward Sidi Genus played her most complete match of the season - winning balls, challenging for posession and linking up with players in the midfield - as the Cadets utilized the Jamaican in a lone striker role for the majority of the match. Opting for a 4-5-1 formation, Head Coach Lennon encouraged his XI to spread the field and probe for seams in the final third.
"I thought Sidi gave us everything she could for 90 minutes and it really made things tough for Seton's back four", said Lennon of the third-year player. "We had good movement off the ball from Sidi and that allowed us to find our flanks through Maise, Najla and Shannon."
The SJC midfield held to task for the majority of the match and almost produced the game's first goal when junior Najla Muhammad got in behind the defense and attempted a shot at goalkeeper Jamie Abell (8 saves) from 16 yards. Seton's Cara Hamel was equal to the task and slid in just as Muhammad struck the ball.
St. John's kept coming at the third seed with chances in the 21st and 30th minutes, respectively. The first sequence involved junior midfielder Maise McCune, who was dominant from box-to-box, as she linked up with central partner Shannon Collins 25 yards from goal, and played a quick exchange of passes with Genus that allowed Collins space to get forward. With a deft touch to her left, Collins struck a strong blast at goal that Abell thwarted before falling to the ground to corral the ball and settle her back four.
In the 30th minute, the Cadets earned a throw-in from the right corner after Genus forced Seton's Allie Reilly to play the ball across the touchline. SJC's Muhammad quickly grabbed the ball and lofted an arcing throw-in to McCune, who flicked the ball with her head across the goal from right to left where the ball bounced freely to the back post. Junior forward Mary Matecki raced in and got her foot on the ball before Seton's Hamel blocked it off the right post as it trickled away from the goal.
Despite the pressure, Seton responded with creative play through senior midfielder Nia Walcott and junior forward Solita Parker. With two minutes remaining in the first half, Walcott dispossessed the Cadets at midfield and played a streaking Parker into space on the right flank. Parker's long, gaping strides allowed her to get past sophomore Kat Colevas, who returned to the lineup after missing the past two matches with injury, and launch a blistering strike from 13 yards towards the upper right corner of the SJC goal. Like a spider in her web, SJC's Kirsten Glad (9 saves) acrobatically stretched all 5'9 of her athletic frame across to push the ball up and over the crossbar for a corner kick.
The Cadets averted danger and completed the first stanza nil-nil amidst a boisterous home crowd of Seton students and families who cheered mightily for their home team. Lennon made one change to the XI as junior midfielder entered in the 41st minute for Mimi Rosenberg - one of the Cadets more versatile players over the past nine matches - and the scarlet and white went to work with confident passing and runs off the ball. Sophomore Nia Sena switched on from the moment she entered on the flank for junior Morgan Testa, and hustled for loose balls up and down the touchline with little time to catch her breath. Testa would later re-enter the match late in the second half for Sena and played one of her stronger matches of the season often combining with right back Ally Grossman when the Cadets dispossessed Seton and looked to initiate the attack.
It wasn't until the the 48th minute that Seton generated its best chance of the half. Junior forward Kellie Smith stole an errant pass in the middle third and streaked towards Glad. With pace and skill, she averted challenges from several Cadet defenders before she cut back and sliced a strike towards the lower, left post from 9 yards that had Glad beat but rolled inches wide of the goal.
Lennon was not pleased and urged his team to contain the elusive forward before she could get control of the ball. SJC centre backs Lis Parks and Alison Slark stayed connected at the hip and held their ground above the 18, but Seton's Smith continued to disrupt the SJC midfield and won another loose ball in the 58th minute that resulted in a hard strike at Glad from a streaking Selina Parker. Glad cut down the angle and held onto the attempt to preserve the scoreline at zero. Despite this chance, the SJC back four of Colevas, Grossman, Parks and Slark was equal to the task for 100 minutes, and snuffed out the majority of Seton's passes and driven balls with excellent individual and help defending.
SJC's best goal-scoring chance of the second half came in the 85th minute when Grossman whipped in a driven cross from the right touchline that froze the Seton back four. As the ball sailed in front of the goal, neither team reacted quickly and the chance that could have produced a game-winning strike went out of bounds for a goal kick.
With daylight diminishing, the referee blew for time and instructed both coaches to get their teams back onto the pitch quickly for the start of he first sudden death overtime period. Similar to the pace and tenor of the previous eighty minutes, both teams attacked and defended with vigor and persistence. Yet, neither team could solve space between the posts due to the smart goalkeeping of Abell and Glad, who were both stellar between the posts for their respective sides.
The match was abandoned in darkness after 90 minutes and both teams agreed to return to Lonergan Field on Wednesday afternoon to determine a winner. When the Cadets returned on Wednesday, it was reported to the coaching staff during pre-game activities that the strike force of juniors Genus and Matecki would not be able to continue due to illness. Lennon turned to freshman Lizzie Dunn to occupy the front runner position and challenge for possession with check runs towards the ball. Dunn's height and presence up top almost paid dividends in the 94th minute when she held off a Seton defender and laid the ball back to Muhammad, who switched the point of attack to Collins, before the midfielder played Dunn in behind the back four. The touch was a bit long and ended up out of bounds for a goal kick.
At the end of the second overtime, St. John's banded together in a shoulder-to-shoulder circle to review the shooting order for penalty kicks. Junior co-captains Ally Grossman and Alison Slark pleaded with their team to stay calm and focused on the task at hand, while Lennon instilled confidence in his team to finish the job at the penalty spot.
"I truly felt that Kirsten would save one of their attempts", said Lennon after the match. "She came close on several occasions and made the right choice as to which way to dive."
The referee instructed the players to meet in the middle of the field whereby each shooter would step up to the penalty spot when invited by the center official. Seton went first followed by St. John's.
PENALTY KICK RESULTS
SJC SETON
McCune - GOAL Hamel - GOAL
Colevas - GOAL Otte - GOAL
Muhammad - GOAL Walcott - GOAL
Grossman - GOAL Hammond - GOAL
Collins - GOAL DeLoach - GOAL
Taylor - GOAL Unstead - GOAL
Parks - NO GOAL Gales - GOAL
"It's never easy to lose on penalties, especially in the playoffs", Lennon stated after speaking with his team. "We gave them everything we had and played our hearts out from start to finish. It hurts to lose, which is something this group is not accustomed to, but we'll use that to work harder and become a stronger, more unified team during the off-season. Hats off to every Cadet, our parent corps, fans and athletic administration for their undying support this year."
Congratulations to all of the players for their hard work, sacrifices and enthusiasm throughout the season.
FINAL MATCH STATS
SJC SETON
Shots 11 9
Saves 8 9
Fouls 10 13
CK 4 2
FK 8 8
Caution: SJC Coach Lennon 19' (Dissent)
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