Congratulations to our 2011-2012 Soccer captains, Turner Block and Siri Andrews!
The Wreckers most successful season in decades ended in heartbreak when the State LL Semi-Final match with #1 Glastonbury ended in a 1-1 draw and Glastonbury advanced to the final on penalty kicks.
On a beautiful late autumn afternoon, the two teams battle on level terms throughout. Staples used the speed of Ali Crofts, Turner Block and Abbey Lake to pressure the Tomahawk defense while Glastonbury used a huge size advantage in midfield to force the play into the Staples half. But both teams played stellar defense in a scoreless first 40 minutes.
Staples began the second half with the wind at their backs and began to take the game to Glastonbury. The back four of Siri Andrews, Colleen McCarthy, Megan Root and Alex Wiener met every challenge and repeatedly shut down the Tomahawks and sent the ball back into the attacking half. Goalkeeper Jesse Ambrose was active picking off anything that penetrated the back four.
Senior captain Abby Fagan moved to the middle of the field to combat the strength of Glastonbury’s midfield and in the 17th minute of the second half she stepped in front of a clearing pass and sent a full volley up to Lake. The speedy forward beat the first defender, pushed the ball to the right past another defender and powered a shot inside the left post to give the Wreckers the lead.
Staples fought to control the play with Chloe Rosenfield, Maggie Walsh, Gea Mitas, Katie Ambrose and Lauren Garcia rotating through the midfield as Coach Ross looked for the right combination to combat the size and strength of the Tomahawks midfield. But with Staples in the lead, Glastonbury pushed extra players forward and it paid off in the 26th minute when a loose ball fell to a Glastonbury attacker at the top of the box and the ensuing shot beat Ambrose just under the crossbar to tie the score at one apiece.
With just 7 minutes left in regulation Staples had a great chance to take the lead for good but a great cross by Lake somehow evaded both Crofts and Block and rolled harmlessly out of bounds. And when Block’s shot with just minutes remaining bounced off the crossbar and out of play, the teams were headed to overtime.
Glastonbury had the better of the play in the extra periods but a pair of fine saves by Ambrose combined with a wall of defense provided by Andrews and McCarthy assured that for the second time in a week Staples season would come down to penalty kicks.
Staples had had a season of comebacks. But when they went down early in the penalty kick round, there were no more comebacks. Glastonbury was perfect with their kicks and only Fagan was able to convert of the four Wreckers sent to the spot. While Glastonbury celebrated a well-earned trip to the final, the Wreckers walked off the field with heads held high after another outstanding effort that had left them short of the finals by the slimmest of margins.
