Soccer

Keepsake

Great save by Fallsburg’s Hong preserves tie in defensive standoff

By RICHARD A. ROSS

MONTICELLO, NY — Great soccer games are often decided on the play of the keeper. As the last line of defense and the one player afforded the best view of the other team’s impending attack, a keeper needs to be fearless, quick and have great instincts.

The advantage lies with the shooter who can anticipate where he or she wants to put the ball, while the keeper has to guess right in order to take the right angle to stop a shot. A hard-kicked ball can easily find room left, right, up or down of a diving keeper. But the shots that are stopped, particularly in games when few good opportunities present themselves, can be game changers.

In the October 2 match up between Monticello and Fallsburg, two schools that have struggled mightily to score, goals have, indeed, been at a premium this fall. So when Fallsburg’s Ashley Hong made an awesome save to preserve a 1-1 tie in the second half, she drew the respect and praise of Monticello coach Paul David.

“Hong saved the game for Fallsburg. When she was about to go over the goal line, she threw the ball behind her to her defense who cleared the ball from the box. That was a great play by the keeper,” said David, who was baffled by his team’s inability to get more than the one goal it had scored at 28:31 of the first period. Nyoki Tate had beat Hong by drilling a ball just to the keeper’s right as it whizzed into the net inside the left-hand post.

Tate’s shot was certainly not her first. The Lady Panthers had the better of the early play in the midfield and a number of corner-kick opportunities that came up empty. Coaches David and his assistant Buddy Goldsmith had tinkered with their lineup, looking for the right combination up front to capitalize on the team’s quickness and dominance in winning balls.

They’re still looking.

A brilliant cross by Tate to Carly Bulaga handed the Lady Panthers another chance to make it 2-0, but Bulaga’s shot was caught by a diving Hong in the middle of the cage, though the right side was wide open.

Those missed chances would come back to haunt Monticello. Remembrance of them is likely to turn David and Goldsmith into insomniacs.

Hong got great help by a brilliant defensive move by Jessica Brignoll, who guarded the right post on a corner kick and repulsed a shot that would have gone in. Dayna Halprin provided a strong line of defense for the Lady Comets, in addition to acting as an agent to generate offense. In the first half, though, Fallsburg was unable to muster a viable attack. With speedy Sierra Spechler and veteran Demi Cruz up front, Fallsburg has a pair of viable weapons, but shots by Fallsburg lacked force or accuracy.

But at 8:16 of the second half, Fallsburg’s Demi Cruz finally broke through to send a shot over the head of Monticello’s Theresa Fuoto, who had replaced Jessica Stant, who kept Fallsburg scoreless during her first-period tenure.

Once Fallsburg had tied the game, they intensified their defensive efforts. A tie against Class A Monticello, while not quite as alluring as a win, would still be a motivating factor for Fallsburg coach Mandy Biccum and her Lady Comets.

Monticello rained shots on goal, but couldn’t find the keyway. In all, the Lady Panthers outshot Fallsburg 21-6, but to no avail.

The two teams battled to a scoreless deadlock through a pair of 10-minute overtime periods leading to the standoff.

Stant had six saves in the first period and Fuoto recorded three in the second. Hong ended up with 13 saves in the non-league game. The tie brought Monticello’s record to 2-6-2 (0-2-1 OCIAA), while Fallsburg’s record improved to 1-5-1 (0-3 OCIAA).

Visit riverreportersports.com for an album of pictures and more game details.