Talented Mepham holding its own

Two weeks into the soccer season, the Mepham Lady Pirates have shown they belong among the county’s elite teams, having held their own in their first season back in Conference AB-1 after two consecutive undefeated regular seasons.
The team announced themselves in style earlier this month, defeating Manhasset in their conference opener, 8-2, with goals by five different players, including four by star sophomore striker Luciana Setteducate.
After four league games, the Lady Pirates stand at 2-1-1, good for third in Conference AB-1.
Their dominant start against Manhasset may have been the result of several months of penned up energy following their quarterfinal playoff loss to Valley Stream South last October, a sudden end to a season in which they had high hopes of competing for a state championship.
“It always stings,” said coach Janine Bizelia. “But we learn from those games. We have lots of players who are hungry and ready to get revenge on that loss.”

While the Lady Pirates graduated 11 seniors, their current squad contains a wealth of experience. Three sophomores notwithstanding, their entire roster is full of juniors and seniors, and one of those sophomores – Setteducate -- has been on varsity since seventh grade.
“She’s just lights out, if not the best player in the conference,” said Bizelia of Setteducate. “We keep saying, Luciana, it feels like you’ve been here forever. She might be the first six-year-varsity player to go through Mepham.”
The Lady Pirates feature quite a few weapons on offense, including juniors Briana Sayoc and Rachel Eisert, both captains, who form a formidable midfield duo, adept at feeding the ball through to Setteducate. Two other threats include seniors Julia Cardace and Brianna Wenthen, who Bizelia said each bring energy and a strong work ethic every single day.
In the backfield, Bizelia highlighted her third captain, Elisa D’sa, a center back who has played varsity since eighth grade, as well as two newcomers to varsity, sophomores Adriana Iemma and Olivia Brill. At keeper, senior Samantha Kubica has stepped up and played well in place of injured starter Hailey Stork.
The Lady Pirates followed up their opening win with a 3-1 loss to Garden City on Sept. 12, a tight game that Garden City put away with a late goal while Mepham players pushed up to try for the equalizer.
“We struggled with a couple little mistakes,” said Bizelia, who noted that they play every team in their conference twice this season “We are going to go game-by-game and will put our best effort to improve next time.”
They put that into practice their next game on Sept. 14, defeating South Side, 3-2, their first victory over that team in program history. Goal scorers included Cardace, Wenthen and junior Julia Rawlinson.
Last Friday, Mepham tied Wantagh, 2-2, with Eisert scoring the tying goal with seven minutes remaining.
Overall, it’s a positive start for a Lady Pirates team adjusting to stronger competition. “The girls are ready for the challenge,” Bizelia said. “They’re so excited to go far. We want to win a county championship.”