Kennedy tough to slow down

Kennedy's jumped out of the gates with a 2-1 mark on the girls' soccer field (1-1 in Conference II) and hopes to build on last season's appearance in the Nassau Class AA playoffs, where it dropped a double-overtime decision to Hicksville in the first round. The Lady Cougars won their first two games by the combined score of 9-1 and did everything but finish in a 2-1 loss to Valley Stream Central last Monday.

The Lady Eagles goalkeeper was peppered by nearly 30 shots and found herself on an island on an number of Kennedy breakaways, but stopped almost everything in her direction. "It was just one of those days where we couldn't finish," coach Janine Bizelia said of her team, which shot high, wide and in the vicinity of Central's goalie all game.

Speed is the key at every level for the Lady Cougars, who are led by senior Morgan Kitton and freshman Krista Trinidad at forward. While Kitton's quickness makes her a huge asset in open space, Trinidad has already proven to be effective around the net and totaled two goals and an assist in the first three games. Kitton, stifled by the Valley Stream Central defense on five breakaways, has already scored three goals.

Senior midfielder Nicole Insardi sits atop the county leaderboard with six assists and tallied four in a 7-1 season-opening win over Valley Stream South on Sept. 13, leading the scoring outburst after Kennedy fell behind by a goal. Sophomore Kerri Baum's creativity with the ball and heady play makes her a perfect fit as an offensive midfielder, while sophomore Deana Santo handles the defensive responsibilities at center-midfield in Bizelia's unique alignment. "Our midfielders play front and back, not side-to-side [like most teams]," she said.

The defense also shies away from the normal alignment, as Bizelia prefers to play the type of zone defense used at the collegiate level. "Communication is the key to playing a zone in the back," she said. "They really got the hang of it last season. It takes a lot of communication, brains and usually experience."

And if anything, the Lady Cougars are loaded with experience on defense with four seniors in the lineup. Allie Keller, Danielle Liotta, Kayleigh Greiser and Stacey Wolfson are the normal starters, though freshman Sara Rothery has had a big impact filling in for the injured Wolfson.

Junior Jillian Waller and freshman Nicole Liotta are vying for playing time in net. "It's a day-to-day battle which is great," Bizelia said. "They just push each other."

Kennedy hosts Long Beach on Friday at 4:30 p.m.