By STEVE SINISKI
Oceanside jumped out the gates after intermission and put East Meadow on its heels, getting off two quick shots on goaltender Jessica Stolz within the first two minutes. The offensive surge continued, and the Lady Sailors scored the game¹s first goal at the 47-minute mark when Caitlyn Collins controlled a loose ball that Stolz made the initial save on. Collins, surrounded by two other teammates at point-blank range just to the right of East Meadow¹s goal, dribbled back to get a solid angle and put the ball into an empty net. Three minutes later, Nadia Scasso scored from 30 yards out lofting a ball into the East Meadow crease that managed to carry over Stolz¹s head.
³We realized that we were not playing our game,² Collins said of a discussion at halftime. ³We weren¹t taking the greatest touches and we weren¹t playing as a team.²
Both Collins and Nicole Capo, the Lady Sailors two co-captains
admitted the early goal provided exactly the type of confidence boost the team needed.
Oceanside goaltender Danielle Gura recorded her fourth shutout in five games, turning back a number of East Meadow scoring opportunities. She punched a shot by Colleen Schweiger over the net with eight minutes to play and turned back a rush by Courtney Gross midway through the second half on a breakaway.
³Oceanside performed very well and earned the victory tonight,² East Meadow coach Matt Pedicini said.
Stolz had a number of saves with Oceanside players in her face, breaking up a rush in the 28th minute with a sliding stop and
collided with Shannon Farrell on another stop in the second half. ³We didn¹t compete the way we needed to compete to get the result [win],² Pedicini said.
The loss followed a first-round bye and a 4-3 victory over No. 7 Baldwin in sudden death penalty kicks in the quarterfinals on Nov. 1. Mallory Lutero converted the game-winning kick, the 10th player to shoot in the two rounds.
³It¹s horrible that someone had to lose a game like that,² Lady Bruins coach Darius Burton said, noting the hotly contested
battle. ³We played 120 minutes of soccer.²
Kerri Anne Deignan opened the scoring for Baldwn with a goal from 40 yards out off a free kick one minute into the second half. It was re-directed into the net after the kick was headed backwards by an East Meadow defender. ³They controlled the ball more but both teams had opportunities to score,² Burton said. ³We hit the post one time in the first half and their goalie made a couple of great stops.²
The Lady Jets got the equalizer when Brittany Walsh scored 20 minutes later, setting the stage for the extended play. ³It was heart-stopping,² Pedicini said. ³It was a great win.²
