South Side rallies for Long Island title

Two dramatic goals in the final 15 minutes gave South Side a thrilling 2-1 come-from-behind victory over East Islip and its first Long Island girls’ soccer championship since 2014.

Senior Anna Pennecke provided the difference by converting her own rebound from close range with 3:58 remaining in Saturday’s L.I. Class A title game/Southeast Regional Final before a packed crowd at Shoreham-Wading River High School. Junior Maggie Colvin orchestrated the crossing pass that led to the winning goal.

The Cyclones (13-3-2) head to Cortland in search of their first state crown since 2012 and will face Spencerport in next Saturday’s 5:30 p.m. semifinal at Tompkins Cortland Community College with a spot in Sunday’s 3 p.m. championship game up for grabs.

“It’s amazing to be going to states,” Pennecke said. “I saw Maggie’s cross and after it bounced off the goalie, it came right back to me. I hit it and saw it go into the back of the net. It’s definitely the biggest goal of my life.”

The equalizer, which came just over two minutes after East Islip’s Kate Alexander broke a scoreless tie on a penalty kick, was the first of Charley Doreste’s life at any level of soccer. One of South Side’s three sophomore starting defenders, Doreste got the nod from coach Judi Croutier to take a free kick from 20 yards and she delivered by drilling home the tying goal.

“I was surprised at the opportunity because I don’t really take free kicks,” Doreste said. “I’ve never scored before so it’s pretty crazy. I saw the wall they set up was shifting and it gave me more room on the right side. I didn’t even see the goalie. But I knew exactly where I wanted to place it and when it went in, it really switched the mood of the game.”

Croutier said it was a “gut feeling” to have Doreste take the momentum-changing shot. “Sometimes come playoff time you have to try some different things," Croutier said. "As a coaching staff, we’ve talked about having Charley step up for a free kick and it turned out to be the perfect time.”

Goalkeeper Avery Testa, one of South Side’s six starting sophomores, made three saves in front of an airtight defense spearheaded by Doreste, Christina LiCalzi, Kayla Hubler and Morgan Harloff. East Islip keeper Izzy Kelly made 6 saves.

“I’m so proud of our team,” LiCalzi said. “We’ve been through a lot. We had a rough stretch in the middle of the season but I think the losses only made us stronger.

“We always find a way to pick each other up,” she added. “It’s exciting to be Long Island champs and put the program back on the map.”

The Cyclones were four days removed from capturing their second straight Nassau Class A title and 28th in program history, beating Manhasset 2-0 on Nov. 2. Last spring, their season ended with the county crown since the pandemic led to a decision to not play regional or state championships.

In her first stint as South Side’s coach before returning this fall, Croutier led it to eight county and L.I. titles as well as five state crowns culminating in 2009.

“I’m so happy for the girls and the entire program,” she said. “Going upstate is special and we’re looking forward to it.”