Transit Authority
Fallsburg Rides Its Fiery Defense and Speed To Marshal An Authoritative League Win Over Visiting Tri-Valley; Rakkir Watson Excels At Both Ends Of The Floor With Game-High16 points and Commanding Defense
Fallsburg 61, Tri-Valley 39
By RICHARD A. ROSS
Two trains running trying to reach the sectional roundhouse as Fallsburg's express bypasses Tri-Valley (Clockwise): Tri-Valley's James Pugh gets a layup after stealing the ball. T-V's Rodney Jester scores over Fallsburg's Jarrett Madison, Michael Robinson elevates for two of his 15 points on the night. Comet cheerleaders soar in spirit and style. Tri-Valley's Conor Walsh is surrounded by Fallsburg's Rakkir Watson and Dustin Foertsch. Dustin Foertsch scores two of his eventual ten points in the game. Rakkir Watson posts two as he rises above Greg Swarthout. Watson led all scorers with 16 points and played great pressure defense.
FALLSBURG, NY—All aboard for the Fallsburg express which bypasses teams as it races through the season. Tougher than tough on their home floor, the Fallsburg Comets streaked by Tri-Valley on January 12, another Division V opponent that entered their station seeking to derail them.
Like the Eldred Yellow Jackets a few days prior, the Bears were unsuccessful in slowing down the hurtling Comets who, when they get up to full speed, are a blazing juggernaut.
Fallsburg's Braiden DeGraw looms large as he looks to block a shot by Tri-Valley's James Pugh. He was successful on several such attempts and scored eight points including a pair of treys. Pugh did his share of damage too as he led the Bears with 11 points.
Newton’s first law of motion applies to the current Fallsburg phenomena:
“Every object in a state of uniform motion tends to remain in that state of motion unless an external force is applied to it.”
To date, out of the eight games they’ve played, Fallsburg has denied opponents’ successful application of force to stop its forward motion. The exception being an overtime loss to S.S. Seward and a prior early season loss to Walton.
The Seward defeat was a wakeup call for the Comets who would love to end this season as the Number One train in Division V. But after their heart-rending overtime loss down at Seward, they currently display the Number Two light as they rumble along towards Grand Central Station also known as the Section Nine Playoffs.
Intent on staying on track, Fallsburg was respectful and wary of gritty Tri-Valley.
Two years ago the Bears nearly knocked Fallsburg off its sectional-bound track when Dean Winters hit a last second trey on the Comets home floor. Scouting Tri-Valley as it dispensed with Tuxedo, Fallsburg Coach Pete Dworetsky saw the Bears perimeter lethality against the Tornadoes’ zone.
Man-to-man it was going to be for the Comets. But to maintain that agenda they’d have to be quick and get good rotating help. Fueling that, they’d need good rebounding, shot blocking and players who could pick pockets to set up easy transition buckets at the other end of the floor.
Tri-VAlley senior Greg Swarthout had great success early on including this slash to the rim. He scored six of his ten points in the first quarter affording the Bears the early lead.
Fallsburg, at least in this encounter with the Bears, proved they had all of the above going as they did against Eldred a few days prior. On the offensive end, they feature an arsenal of weaponry with great depth. Mention Fallsburg and it’s Michael Robinson that is the first player everyone mentions and rightfully so.
Robinson is the heart of Fallsburg’s engine but there are other cylinders clicking too and when those pistons are firing in synch, it’s poetry in motion.
Rakkir Watson, Braiden DeGraw, Dustin Foertsch, Sam Didinsky, Russell Corley and Jim Bertholf are integral parts of the Fallsburg machine, abetted at times by the insertion of Jarrett Madison and Austin Halchak who can keep things running.
Tri-Valley is talented too and before all is said and done, the Bears look to pick up speed and catapult themselves into the sectional roundhouse.
A coming fray at Eldred will be key to that agenda as will rematches with Tuxedo. The Bears will also look to pay Fallsburg back when they visit them later this season but for Coach Brian Tingley, it’s one game at a time and getting five Division V wins onboard by the end of the regular season line means a green light for admission to the big dance, something the Bears missed out on a year ago.
They’ve got the shooters to do it in James Pugh, Greg Swarthout, Shatik Smith, Jesus Lozada, Conor Walsh, Cody Exner, Dave Donovan and Rodney Jester. With size from Alex Brown, Steve McInerney and Devin Donnelley, they have the potential for a tough inside presence as well.
Defensively, the Bears played admirably in this game. Rather it was their poor shooting that derailed them, in particular a horrendous four-for-18 from the charity stripe for a nightmarish 22 percent. When you lose by 22 points as the Bears did in this 61-39 affair, blanking on 14 freebies proves to be a toxic pill.
Fallsburg’s got off to a slow start after Robinson controlled the opening tip against Pugh. Robinson missed on his first two attempts, traveling on the second of these. Blanks by Watson and Corley preceded a Pugh bucket as the Bears drew first blood at 5:41.
Corley answered with an underhanded scoop to tie it up but Greg Swarthout took advantage of Fallsburg’s initial laxity on defense to slash the lane for two. Corley drew an offensive foul as the Comets continued to look more like a local than an express.
You've heard of the Reuben Sandwich, how about the Smith Sandwich? Here Shatik Smith is hemmed in by Rakkir Watson and Jim Bertholf as the ball is about to come loose into Watson's hands for an easy transition bucket the other way.
Swarthout cut through for another deuce before Watson answered to cut the Bears’ margin to 6-4. Tingley looked on with rapt attention as his team was executing the game plan to a ‘t’, while Dworetsky did not like what he was watching in these early minutes. Substitutions were imminent including a sit down for Robinson for reasons he chose not to share.
DeGraw got a block of Pugh but the Comets traveled. He blocked Pugh again on the next possession. Swarthout penetrated uncontested again for the 8-4 lead but the Comets soon proved they could withstand a few early jabs as they counterpunched with an 8-2 run to close the first quarter leading 12-10. In the quarter they got four each from Watson, Foertsch and Corley. The Comets assumed the lead at 1:39 of the first quarter.
Defensive pressure was working for the Bears as Bertholf and Watson sandwiched guard Shatik Smith causing the Watson steal and layup.
Once the Comets bypassed Tri-Valley, they never trailed again.
The Comets cheerleaders stepped to the floor to add their spirit. The largely home crowd was feeling the vibe.
Robinson returned to start the second quarter and quickly scored. McInerney hit one of two from the stripe before incurring the Bears’ fourth team foul as the score remained 14-11 with 5:11 to go. Watson hit a trey to make it 17-11. At times the Comets tried to a look a bit too fancy and it cost them. After a steal, Bertholf threw away a no-look pass when the Comets had numbers for an easy layup.
Other times players looked to ram through traffic instead of making the extra pass resulting in travelling violations. Simply put, Fallsburg still has plenty of work to do to tune up for the blistering pace of the sectionals. Two more league wins will get them a berth but merely getting there this year for this senior laden squad is far from the main agenda.
Robinson profited from another steal to take it to the rim as the Comets raced further ahead with a DeGraw trey that made it 22-13 with the throttle still not pushed all the way. Six more points would be forthcoming as Fallsburg used its 17-7 switchback to take a 29-17 lead into the half.
Tri-Valley's Cody Exner is a potentially lethal three-point shooter but on this night his trey's were off. He had some open looks like this one but found the Fallsburg rim unwelcoming. Look for him to light it up on the Bears' home floor in the rematch.
Here’s the second quarter summary: Fallsburg got six from Robinson and Watson, two from Foertsch and three from DeGraw. Tri-Valley got two each from Swarthout, Jester and Pugh and one from McInerney.
Tri-Valley had its best performance in the third quarter as they outscored Fallsburg 14-13 to cut the deficit to 11 at 42-31. In that stanza it was a balanced attack that abetted the Bears with four from Pugh, two each from Swarthout, Donovan and Walsh. Jesus Lozada hit one of two from the stripe.
Tri-Valley’s third quarter featured six points from Swarthout, a bucket from Pugh and two made free throws from Jester. The Comets countered with five from DeGraw that included his second trey, four from Watson, two from Foertsch and a pair of made free throws from Corley.
Fallsburg pushed the throttle all the way up in the fourth quarter as they created a T-V train wreck by outscoring them 19-8. The Bears showed signs of fatique with errant shots while Fallsburg looked fresh from substituting as incoming players fed right into the speedy mix.
Robinson scored eight of his eventual 15 in the final frame including a trio of made free throws.Buckets from Foertsch, Watson and Didinsky coupled with three points from Madison and one point from Halchak. Tri-Valley went 0-for-eight from the stripe in the stanza and managed only lone buckets from Exner, Lozada, Smith and Donnelley.
Pugh led the Bears with 11, while Swarthout had 10 by night’s end.
The buzzer that sounded the 61-39 Comets’ win advanced Fallsburg’s record to 6-2 (3-1 OCIAA), while Tri-valley fell to 4-5 (2-2 OCIAA). The Bears won the turnover battle, committing 15 to Fallsburg’s 20, 11 of which came in the second half. The Comets were an impressive 12-for-15 from the line for a lofty 80 percent. That accuracy would have propelled them to a win at Seward but that night they had a dreadful time from the line.
Tingley summed things up this way in terms of his team’s early success. “We did well with Michael in there as we got out to an 8-4 lead. Oddly when he went to the bench, that’s when they tied it up. I suspect we’ll have a different game the next time we play them. We had only one three point shot for the many we took. We don’t usually shoot that poorly,” he averred.
Loud and proud: Fallsburg cheerleaders let you know how they adore their team.
“In addition I was telling the boys we were four-from-18 from the line. Even if had 70 percent of those it’s kind of a different game. Fallsburg never took their foot off the pedal at the end and we had our subs in there and were still kind of staying with them. I think Steve did a good job on Michael. Our defense played okay. Sometimes when they drove through we tried not to let the usual suspects hurt us and we played them tough.”
He went on to say, “We talked about this game being a measuring stick at about halfway through the season. We’re putting this 61-39 score on the board and we’ll try to improve that the next time we see them at our place. Rebound-wise in the first quarter we were a machine. We didn’t give up the second and third shots just to keep it close.
Our Eldred game is big since that would get us back to .500 overall and 3-2 in the league. Then you’d need two more wins in five more games,” he posited.
Needless to say Dworetsky was pleased with the with the victory. “We didn’t pick up full court pressure right away and that contributed to Tri-Valley’s early run. Once we picked up our full court pressure game our intensity takes over. Braiden and Rakkir played great defense tonight and Dustin had another great game. They bring more and more defensive pressure. Tonight we only gave up one three. That was a huge focus in practice yesterday, not giving up the open look.”
He went on to say that he felt that the Bears weren’t comfortable even when they had open looks. “Defense is our focus. We can shoot the ball all day but if we can’t stop people…..like I said we’ll go as far as our defense will take us.
I thought Rakkir brought great pressure up top and he didn’t allow shooters to get any time. Pugh lit us up last year but we made them work very hard.”
Fallsburg travels to Tuxedo and then hosts Chester on January 20. “We can’t sleep on anybody,” said Dworetsky.
Sleeping will have to be reserved for late at night as each of these fine teams looks to stay bright-eyed and fresh for the coming challenges of the ensuing weeks. I fully expect both to be in the sectionals when all is said and done and we all know that once you’re in, anything can happen and it usually does.
For an album of photos, visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
Blazing Comets
Fallsburg Throttles Eldred With Commanding Rebounding Edge and Defensive Pressure; Michael Robinson Leads All Scorers With 18 Points Including An Authoritative Dunk In Division V Clash
Fallsburg 81, Eldred 50
By RICHARD A. ROSS
Scenes from Fallsburg's blazin' win over Eldred (clockwise): Eldred's P.J. Collins floats in two of his nine points on the night. Fallsburg's Michael Robinson brings the crowd to its feet with an authoritative third quarter dunk. Fallsburg's Dustin Foertsch scores two of his ten points on the night. Eldred's Brian Hazen dribbles the ball into the paint. He ended up with eight points. Fallsburg's Rakkir Watson elevates to score.Fallsburg's Sam Didinsky fires in a three-pointer, one of two he canned in the third quarter. He ended up with 14 points on the night.
FALLSBURG, NY- There are few sights as impressive in the night sky as a blazing comet, an icy body which can be seen when it is close enough to the sun. Comets often have tails and their appearance has historically created quite a stir. Most noteworthy of these is Halley’s Comet named for astronomer Edmond Halley who charted the comet’s history in 1705 and predicted its return approximately every 75 years.
The appearance of comets was once thought to be a bad omen. In 1910 rumors circulated that the earth’s passage through the comet’s tail might poison millions. It was an ominous preamble to the first World War. The comet last appeared in 1986 the year of the Challenger disaster. It’s scheduled to make its next return midyear in 2061.
Locally, the Fallsburg Comets showed their blazing aura and proved to be a bad omen for Eldred on January 9 as they lit up the Yellow Jackets with blinding speed, celestial rebounding and defensive pressure. From the get-go, Eldred seemed dazzled by the Comets’ glaring edge on the boards and their capacity to render mayhem on the Yellow Jacket guards who turned the ball over 12 times in the first half.
The return of senior Russell Corley makes the Blazing Comets even brighter. In his second game back from a hiatus that resulted from a football injury, Corley lit it up with 15 points and a bevy of steals.
Fallsburg was already on fire from its stultifying 60-53 overtime loss down at Seward, a game they lost on the free throw line with an earth-bound dearth of accuracy from the stripe, while Seward made its free throws in OT to outscore Fallsburg 7-0 in the extra stanza.
Inflamed by the loss, the Comets decided they had a new tale to tell and thus they turned their icy presence on Eldred much to the delight of the packed house in the Fallsburg gym.
Fallsburg has no one to match Eldred’s P.J Collins in size but 6-8 Collins is Eldred’s sole tall presence.
Credit the Comets with keeping Collins at bay. He accrued a pair of early fouls and had to sit out much of the latter part of the first half. But even with his return, his contribution of nine points on the night was nowhere nearly enough to offset his counterpart Michael Robinson who scored 18.
Defensively, both players blocked shots but Fallsburg took a commanding lead on the offensive an defensive glass affording them two, three and even four shot attempt sequences. Robinson’s antics were impressive, in particular his dunk and subsequent alley oops set up by teammates who beamed the ball off the backboard for his put backs.
But the Comets would get a trio of other players in double figures including 15 from Russell Corley who was returning to play only his second game after a long hiatus from a football injury. Corley and Sam Didinsky provided an extra spark for the sizzling Comets. The latter was key in effecting steals and converting them into lay ups and hoisting up a pair of treys, the last thing Eldred wanted to see given the burgeoning deficit they were already privy to.
Trying to provide an answer to early troubles, Eldred Coach J.J. Gass advises his team during a time out. Savvy coaches like Gass are quick to determine what's working and what's not. It's another matter to get the players on the floor to adjust their game. Eldred is very tough on its own floor in the Bee Hive and no doubt the Yellow Jackets look forward to paying Fallsburg back in the rematch down in Green land.
Collins controlled the opening tip but early turnover woes soon manifested themselves for the ‘Jackets. One such early turnover afforded Corley the game’s first points. He’d score six points in the first quarter to go along with six from Robinson and a baseline beauty from Jarrett Madison to put the Comets in the 14-4 driver’s seat by the end of the frame.
Eldred didn’t score until there was 2:59 remaining in the quarter as Nick Dilles hit a jumper from the top of the key. Zak Dilles hit a pair of free throws for the only other Eldred points.
Fallsburg poured in 19 more in the second frame to Eldred’s 12 as Corley netted five, Robinson, Didinsky and Dustin Foertsch had four apiece and Daniel Justiniano added a bucket for good measure. Eldred countered with four from sophomore Bray Curreri and Brian Hazen, three from Nick Dilles and one point from Zak Dilles. Fallsburg led 33-16 at the half.
Despite the lead, Fallsburg had not evinced its best play. Nine turnovers, missed shots and a few mental lapses had coach Pete Dworetsky a bit miffed. In tight games, such miscues can cost a team a game or come playoff time, end its season. As for Eldred Coach J.J Gass, the agenda was to try and get his team to take better care of the ball on offense and to extend its defense past the first touch of Fallsburg’s possessions.
During the break the Comets Cheerleaders graced the floor with the same verve and skill they had deployed at the Monticello Cheerleading Competiton two days prior. The crowd was loving it.
Senior experience vs.sophomore girt: Fallsburg's Michael Robinson looks to take Eldred's Bray Curreri off the dribble. There's much to be learned from playing against some of the best players and Curreri is well on his way. But guarding Robinson is no small task. He's got great instincts, size and determination.
The third quarter proved to be an even worse omen for Eldred as they were bewitched by the Comets who blazed through the gym enroute to scoring 24 points to Eldred’s 17. Didinsky was the prime mover in this onslaught with his pair of treys and steals. He amassed ten points in the frame. He was abetted by four each from Watson, Foertsch and Robinson. The latter had the crowd in a tizzy with his thunderus dunk that afforded the Comets a 47-23 lead midway through the period. Russell Corley would add two points to the conflagration.
Eldred answered the bell valiantly with its best showing of the night. Curreri had six points in the frame, Collins had five. Hazen added four including a beauty of a floater, Zak Dilles and Matt Bisland each had two points. Fallsburg led 57-33 at the end of the third quarter after a Foertsch steal and bucket as time expired.
Corley netted the first points of the fourth quarter as the Comets flirted with a thirty point margin of victory. Corley dished it to Jim Bertholf to edge it closer to that milestone. After a bucket by Eldred’s Nick Stymacks, Fallsburg’s Jarrett Madison hit the first of two of his treys to push Fallsburg to a 64-37 lead. Robinson ‘s alley-oop posted two more. As Dworetsky sought to insert subs to gain valuable minutes, Eldred’s scoring improved dramatically. In the fourth quarter Curreri netted eight including a pair of treys, Nick Dilles had four, Stymack had two and Chris Fredericks had one. Fallsburg’s fourth quarter production came via six from Madison, four each from Bertholf, Robison and Austin Halchak, along with two from Foertsch and Suede Taylor.
Robinson led all scorers with 18 on the night. Corley had 15 and Didinsky scored 14. Foetsch added ten to the cause. The Comets shot five-for-ten for 50% from the line. The Yellow Jackets were 10-for-22 for 45%. Curreri led the charge with 14 points while Collins had nine.
Fallsburg's cheerleaders are not a mere accent to the game. They are an integral part of the atmosphere and spirit of the school's milieu. In addition, they possess great skills, strength, flexibility and style. As noted in the recent post about their appearance at the Monticello Cheerleading Competiton, cheerleading is a sport in every sense of the word. Lady Comets: you rock!
Fallsburg improved to 5-2 (2-1 OCIAA) adding to their victory over Chester. They now brace themselves for a home league clash with Tri-Valley on January 12. Eldred fell to 4-3 (1-2 OCIAA) and must now must face Seward on the road for its next league encounter.
Gass talked about the disparity of rebounds. “P.J. is our only big kid. They’re bigger and more athletic than us but we need to be more disciplined and box out on defense to get rebounds. If you give them three or four shots every time down eventually they’ll make one. Their guards are very quick and able to put the ball pressure on and we could never get by them,” he noted.
Eldred beat Tuxedo for its lone league win but lost to Chester prior to this encounter. “Right now we need to work on defensive boards and not turning the ball over. Our half court defense is pretty strong, especially initially but our offense gives up just as many points as our defense by turning the ball over. Tonight if we were able to clear out that first shot we might have had a closer game,” he averred.
“We’ll be in there at the end. I feel like we can make sectionals but I don’t foresee us being a one or two seed. Once you get in you never know.”
Dworetsky said the game at Seward was disappointing but felt it was another eye-opener for his squad. “On the road it’s going to be tough no matter what. Tonight we put good pressure on the ball but we’d have a nice basket and then give up an easy one in transition. I thought we shared the ball well offensively but we still have a long way to go. I’m happy with the intensity and their effort,” he noted.
Asked to comment on the fine play of Didinsky, Dworetsky promptly replied:
“Sam is a lightning rod. He’s really matured. He’s a total team guy. He just cares about helping his team,” said Dworetsky who knows his team has depth. Our goal is to play consistent good defense. We’ll go as far as our defense can take us.” Looking forward two days hence, Dworetsky noted, “Tri-Valley is tough. They took one from us here a couple of years ago and nearly knocked us out of sectionals,” he recalled.
“We have to be prepared for everyone’s best effort every night and to avoid looking past anyone.”
Watching this senior-laden Comets squad go through the paces, one realizes that like their namesake, things run in cycles And this is their time. Back when the seniors were freshman, Fallsburg was 0-20 at its nadir (low point), far away from its current ascendancy. Will this year’s Blazing Comet tale define its zenith? Time will tell.
For an album of photos, visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
Night And Day
Lady Monties Complete Season Sweep of Sullivan West Under The Lights As Purcell Returns To Action With A Hat Trick; Fallsburg Boys Garner First League Win Of The Season With Crisp Performance Vs. Tri-Valley
Boys: Fallsburg 4, Tri-Valley 1
Girls: Monticello 5, Sullivan West 2
By RICHARD A. ROSS
rross@sportsinsightsny.com
Two games for the price of one (Clockwise) Monticello's Mara Resnick and Sullivan West's Amanda Rosenberger vie for a ball in the heated encounter between the Cats and Dawgs in their rematch. Fallsburg keeper Dustin Foertsch goes airborne in one of his graceful patented saves. Tri-Valley's Christian Reynolds and Fallsburg's Felix Martinez angle for control. Monticello's Annie Purcell, center leads the advance with teammate Kerissa Bennett as Sullivan West's Jasmine Davis follows close by.
SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY—One sporting event a day is more than enough for a photojournalist who takes hundreds of photos, stays up into the night processing and uploading them and then devotes his mornings to telling compelling stories which range far beyond a laundry list of game details.
So imagine trying to reckon with two soccer games in one day; something I am down for at least one more time before this season is out when I travel to Tri-Valley to watch the boys and girls sequentially take on Fallsburg under the lights on October 20.
Just such a double dip was on tap on October 11 as I scurried around trying to catch up with four teams I haven’t seen nearly enough of this fall.
Fallsburg's Alan Sierra and Tri-Valley's Tyler Greffrath look to wrest control of the ball.
Two games supplied two compelling stories which I will combine in this post. Oddly enough for all of the talent on display among the teams who took their verve to the pitch, not one currently sports a winning record and were the season to end today, which thankfully it won’t, neither the Fallsburg or Tri-Valley boys nor the Sullivan West or Monticello girls would be in sectionals.
By season’s end that is apt to change but time will tell.
Fiery Comets Look To Make Headway As Second Half Of The Season Begins With A Win
I began my sojourn in Fallsburg to watch the Comets try to regain some swagger on their home pitch. The schedule for the first half of the season has been brutal , availing Coach Herb Foertsch’s squad nary a league win against four league defeats prior to this tilt with the Bears. With Tuxedo and Seward currently sitting atop of Division V, the Comets are glad to have most of those trials in the rearview mirror as they now turn their attention to T-V, Eldred and a rematch with Chester to try and parlay a series of league wins into a return to sectionals where they feel they can make some serious noise.
Fallsburg had posted a couple of non-league wins affording them a better record than Tri-Valley whose only victory came against Chapel Field. The Bears had already come up on the wrong side of six league games coming into this one and hoped to turn it around with a win over their traditional rival.
But from the opening kickoff it soon became apparent that the Comets would get the better part of the play as keeper Dustin Foertsch had time to daydream with his long range view of the ball which resided principally in the Tri-Valley end of the field.
Fallsburg’s sophomore midfielder Arturo Perez fired the Comets’ first shot on goal only 53 seconds in as Tri-Valley keeper Mike Devault went north into the upper left hand corner to snare it. The Comets held the ball in the T-V end as they set up for the first of seven first half corner kicks. A direct kick by Perez was snared by Devault as Coach Foertsch yelled encouragement to his team to keep the pressure on.
Talented and quick, Tri-Valley's Josue Ramos is tough to defend.
Offensively Tri-Valley was trying to use its speed up front coupled with the deft ball skills of Josue Ramos to get something going. Fallsburg was successful in repulsing rare runs as Kyle Miller, Austin Halchak and Daniel Justiniano were key in sending it quickly back.
At 6:30 the Comets nearly scored as Perez sent a nice cross to forward José Rubio which went just a bit wide. Tri-Valley was whistled for holding in the box but Perez missed on the PK try at 9:11. Halchak blasted one over the top as the Comets kept on coming.. At 11:40 in Felix Martinez turned the ball upfield and drove in an unassisted goal for the 1-0 lead.
Martinez was abetted by an assist from Rubio for his second goal at 17:00 in for the 2-0 edge. The Comets nearly got another one soon thereafter as Devault came out of the goal but Patrick McHugh’s heads up play averted that contingency.
As the first half wound down T-V’s Tom Monforte sent a blast over the top of the crossbar. Another Monforte shot was saved by Foertsch who punted it mightily back into the T-V end where Martinez took a feed from Rubio and sent it over the top of the cage. T-V’s Anthony Beale had a great run up the side and a shot by Zach Nilsen was saved by Foertsch as the half ended.
T-V Coach Jason Closs provided me with the second half scoring as I had to leave to get back for the Suliivan West-Monticello girls game under the lights.
Tri-Valley scored on a cross from Zach Nilsen to Tyler Greffrath who headed the ball into the goal 15:00 minutes into the second half. Fallsburg scored their final goal with under 8 minutes to play in the second half on a penalty kick by A. Halchak following a penalty on a TV player for holding inside the 18. Hope this helps. The other Comets’ score came via Rubio with an assist from Sam Didinsky.
Foertsch had five saves for the Comets; Devault had ten for the Bears. Fallsburg improved to 3-5-0 (1-4-0 OCIAA)l, while Tri-Valley fell to 1-10-0 (0-7-0 OCIAA).
Questionable Call Opens The Floodgates As Monticello Breaks A 2-2 Deadlock With A Trio Of Unasnwered Goals
The Sullivan West Lady Bulldogs gather around Coach Mike Ellmauer at the start of the game.
The night rippled with excitement as the Sullivan West players gathered with their parents prior to the rematch with Monticello. Adorned in their painted shirts that read “No Goals Fo’ You,” the Lady Bulldogs looked to defend their home pitch under the lights and to come out with fire, something they severely lacked in their 3-0 loss to the Lady Panthers two weeks prior.
During the latter moments of that game, Monticello junior Annie Purcell had sustained a concussion and had missed the intervening games. On this night she was back at it and it was clear from the get go that there was no rust from her enforced hiatus.
Reckoning with Purcell had been very much on the mind of Sullivan West Coach Mike Ellmauer as he implored his players to mark her like, “white on rice.” But Purcell’s ball skills, rendered razor sharp by her year-round play on Quickstrike FC would net her a hat trick in the Lady Monties 5-2 win.
That said, it would be amiss to infer from that score that this one a one-sided affair. In fact, it was anything but. It would be more apt to describe this non-league clash as toe-to-toe encounter which had seen each team grab the momentum leading to a 2-2 tie as the Lady Westies tied it up on a PK by Emma Seidl at 26:15 of the second half..
The game took a dramatic turn when an official whistled Sullivan West’s Amanda Rosenberger for a dangerous kick even though there was no one within ten yards of her in any direction.
Iconic match up: Sullivan West's Amanda Rosenberger looks to stymie Monticello's Annie Purcell as the latter turns the ball. Purcell returned from a concussion-induced hiatus to score a trio of goals in the win.
The event would signal a change in momentum in the second half as the Lady Panthers would add three goals for the 5-2 victory. After the game, Ellmauer cited the call as key in the outcome. “That was an awful call. How do you call a dangerous play when the nearest person is more than ten yards away? This has been our modus operandi all year with calls like this from local officials,”Ellmauer went on to say, while not taking anything away from Monticello, a team he noted is far better than their record would indicate.
More on the post-game commentary erelong but first here is the game chronology.
After honoring all of its players including seniors Stephanie Hauschild, Amanda Rosenberger, Emaa Seidl, Alika Simon, Kristina Sumfleth, Kassie Thelman and Giselle Vega, the Lady Bulldogs got set to go to work.
The Lady Westies kicked off but the Lady Monties got control of the initial parry. Seidl sent it deep ahead to Rosenberger but as she would all night long, Monticello defender Laurie Schoonmaker quickly reversed it. Soon Purcell was weaving in and out. Heather Miller’s advance resulted in an offsides call.
Monticello held it in as the two teams continued to strongly contest for the ball. The Lady Panthers pressed the attack with Kerissa Bennett, Jordan Fredell, Purcell and Mara Resnick but the Lady Bulldogs were making their own runs as Rosenberger just missed a nice cross looking to draw first blood.
After a handball call gave the Lady Bulldogs the ball, the Lady Monties held in and Purcell missed a wide-open net at 30:49. Purcell rocked one off the crossbar and Resnick missed on the rebound. Purcell had a shot just under 26 minutes as Jordan Parsons made a sliding save.
Quickly the action reverted to the Monticello end as the Lady Bulldogs looked to break through with a couple of nice chances. Defense was sharp for both squads who appeared to be very evenly matched.
At 16:48 Bennett nearly got one in. Resnick’s shot was blocked by Parsons. The Lady Monties were getting a steady advance up the far sideline but having trouble getting the needed cross in front at times.
Carly Grishaber takes an assist from Cassidy Sauer to score the first goal of the game.
It was Sullivan West that got the first goal at 8:33 as Carly Grishaber poked it through on the left hand side of the net by keeper Morgan Halloran on an assist from Cassidy Sauer for the 1-0 lead. Just one minut e later Resnick answered to tie it up on an assist from Purcell at 7:29. Monticello amped its energy behind the goal and pressed their cause. A great play by Kristina Sumfleth broke up on great run but Purcell had the last word of the first half as she buried an unassisted goal with 19.6 seconds to give the Lady Panthers the 2-1 upper hand at the break.
Sullivan West came out on all cylinders to start the second period. Sullivan West was afforded a penalty kick with 26:25 after a trip in the box. Seidl sent it by Halloran but the official waved it off saying the keeper wasn’t ready. Seidl dialed it up and did it again and the game was now knotted at two-all.
Purcell had a direct kick saved by Parsons as the ball continued to go back and forth. Neither team scored but both had chances. Parsons fell on a shot by Fredell for the save. It was then that Rosenberger was whistled for the dangerous play that set up a goal Bennett assisted by Purcell for the 3-2 lead at 12:54.
It had occurred at a time when the Westies appeared to have the momentum but suddenly things went south in a hurry as Purcell fired in an unassisted goal in to make it 4-2 just 31 seconds later at 12:23.
Monticello gets the bragging rights in this year's chapter of the Cats and Dawgs spat but this feud is far from over.
Purcell’s final goal came on a perfectly lofted direct kick at 9:35, giving the talented junior the hat trick and assuring the Lady Monties of the this year’s last word in the Cats and Dawgs Spat. While the last story was entitled Cats and Dawgs Redux, I’m sure Ellmauer might have been okay with this one being called “Cats and Dawgs Reflux,” as in acid reflux given the bitter taste of the game which slipped away behind the questionable call.
Purcell was upbeat about her return to action. “I think we really kept our intensity up which was an important factor. We’re coming off a lapse over our last few games. We didn’t’ take it for granted that we beat them the last time. We really kept it up and had some nice combinations,” she said.
Asked to comment about her team’s answer to the penalty kick that tied it up, she noted “We never got down and kept the energy positive.” Purcell attributed her direct kick placement to her year-round play with Quickstrike FC, her travel team. We play all year round.
Monticello Coach Bill Stento referred to his team as “Up and down. We’ll have games where we play like this as opposed to losing to Liberty 5-0. It’s been an inconstant year but when these girls come to play, they really show it,” he averred.
Stento felt his backline defense abetted by Lauren Katz who was able to push up as the Lady Westies deployed just to up front, helped to keep the flow heading towards the Lady Bulldogs end a significant part of the time. “That allowed us to control the midfield a little better.”
With a daunting schedule ahead, Monticello will have an uphill battle to make sectionals but they are not technically out of it at this juncture, nor is Sullivan West who must now face Burke for its next challenge while the Monties try to wrangle with Cornwall.
Morgan Halloran had seven saves for the Lady Panthers; Jordan Parsons had 15 for the Lady Bulldogs.
Monticello improved to 3-8, while Sullivan West fell to 4-6-1
For albums of photos from both games, visit www.sportsinsights.smugmug.com
