By TONY BELLISSIMO
And the Lady Cyclones rose to the challenge.
Jenna DiIorio, Jessica Baccaglini and Liz Monfort scored and goalkeeper Lauren Lopresti did the rest, denying three of Islip's five shooters as South Side captured its seventh straight L.I. crown and moved within two wins of an unprecedented fifth consecutive state championship.
Lopresti, a sophomore, made eight saves prior to the shootout. In goal for the Lady Buccaneers, Ali Griffin stopped 16 shots, including a goal mouth try by Monfort with 25 seconds remaining in the first five-minute golden-goal overtime period.
"We practiced penalty kicks a lot in the last two weeks," Lopresti said. "It's a guessing game. I try to get a read on shooters, but it's difficult. You never know where they're aiming. I just pick a side and try to cover as much ground as possible."
It was jubilation for South Side (9-3-5) after Lopresti jumped to turn away a high drive by Beth Bowling. The Lady Cyclones advanced to face Williamsville East (Section VI) in a state semifinal on Friday at 11:45 a.m. at Homer High School. The state final is at noon on Saturday.
"We've peaked at the right time," South Side coach Judi Croutier said. "The girls believed in themselves all along and have worked really hard. They were so relaxed and composed for the shootout. It's a tough thing for both teams, but someone had to move on."
The best chance either team had before the penalty kicks came late in the first overtime off the foot of Monfort, a senior who scored game-winning goals in the Nassau Class A semifinals (against New Hyde Park) and finals (against Island Trees). Then, a minute into the second golden-goal period, Griffin was out of position and involved in a collision that brought down half of her defense at the top of the box. But the keeper scrambled to recover a loose ball just before it crossed the line.
Islip, which got no help from the posts, came close with one second left in regulation when Trisha Sileo's free kick from nearly 30 yards out glanced off the crossbar. Sileo was shadowed all game by Baccaglini, a senior who led the defensive effort, along with junior Emily Slome and freshman Julie Beyar. Also turning in strong games were seniors Traci Baydala and Jackie Bellando, and juniors Jackie Nicholas, Emma Kriss and Colleen Burke.
"Our defense has done an amazing job all year," Lopresti said. Though South Side entered the playoffs as the top seed in Nassau County, the jury was out on whether it could win a 12th straight county championship. "Everyone put their hearts into it and wanted it," said DiIorio, a junior who had a hat trick in the playoff-opening victory over Glen Cove. "It's the best feeling ever. Now we're going back to states and hoping to come out on top."
Given the developments of the past two weeks, chances are the Lady Cyclones will find a way.
Comments about this story? TBellissimo@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 204.
Photos by Andrew Vardakis/Herald
