Sister act led Lady Owls

On any soccer team, it takes a total group effort to be successful. All 11 players on the field need to be in sync with one another and team chemistry is key. For the Lynbrook Lady Owls, there was plenty of chemistry this season. With four sets of sisters, it came naturally.

Of the 19 girls that made up this year’s Lady Owls, eight of them had a sibling on the team, which went 8-2-2 in Nassau Conference ABC-III and finished in second place before suffering a playoff loss to Plainedge last month.

Junior Patricia Loonie, 16, and her sister Erin, 14, a freshman, were the top two scorers. Patricia (eight goals/three assists) said Erin (three goals/six assists) made the key pass on most of her goals this season despite it being their first time playing on the same team together.

“She always knew what I wanted to do and where I wanted to go with the ball so there was a connection,” Patricia, who plays midfield and forward, said. “I’ve grown up watching her so I’ve seen how she plays,” Erin, a midfielder, added.

Senior Danielle Barra and her sophomore sister Victoria also had their first year as teammates this season, but said it was a great experience. Victoria, 15, said it’s going to be weird to play on the team next season after Danielle graduates in June. “It’s nice to have someone to talk about the game with afterward,” Victoria, a midfielder, said.

Danielle, 17, who plays defense, said seeing her sister on the field pushed her to play harder.

Coach Jen Dankenbrink, who has guided the Lady Owls since 2007, said it’s rare to have one set of sisters on a team, let alone four. “The chemistry was really nice this year,” she said. “They did a good job passing and looking out for each other.”

The Mooney sisters, Aine, 17, and Ciara, 15, also wrapped up their first year as teammates. “We’ve never played together before so it’s different,” Aine, a sweeper, said, adding that when she graduates in June she will still follow the program closely next year because of her sister.

Ciara, a defender, said it was a good experience to share the field with her older sister. “It’s nice that I could look up to her,” she said of Aine.

It wasn’t the first time that sophomore’s Alexa and Sydney Amato played together. The 15-year-old twins started their soccer careers on the same field when they were 5.

Sydney likened the team to a big family and said it was good to have other sibling pairings on the team as well. “We’re all sisters,” she said.

Dankenbrink agreed, adding that this year’s team did everything together on and off the field, which was nice for her to see. 

Besides having a great relationship with one sister, Danielle said the Lady Owls had a strong bond throughout their lineup. “It’s like you have 20 other sisters too,” she said.