Cats And Dawgs Redux
Monticello Clicks On All Cylinders In Dominant Win Over Injury-Plagued Sullivan West Youngsters; Monties’ Victory The Latest Chapter In An Ongoing Back-And-Forth Non-League Rivalrry
Monticello 3, Sullivan West 0
By RICHARD A. ROSS
rross@sportsinsightsny.com
Scenes from the Monticello vs. Sullivan West soccer match won by the Lady Monties 3-0 (Clockwise): Monticello's Annie Purcell turns the ball upfield. Purcell would score the first goal of the game. Team photos showing the Monticello Lady Panthers and the Sullivan West Lady Bulldogs, Annie Purcell drives it home, Monticello's Jordan Fredell wins a ball and is pursued by Sullivan West's Dana Borowski. Sullivan West's Kristina Sumfleth reaches out to handle a ball. Monticello's Brianna Bennett races up the field towards the Sullivan West end of the field.
MONTICELLO, NY—Darkening gray skies suggested an end to the brief respite of gorgeous weather in a soccer season already all too familiar with rain. And to be sure, by day’s end there would be a change of weather as far as Monticello was concerned as they were about to uncork what Coach Bill Stento would later refer to as his team’s “Best performance” since he assumed the coaching reins two years ago.”
They say “Into every life a little rain must fall,” but figuratively speaking as far as the lady soccer teams from Monticello (2-4) and Sullivan West (3-5), are concerned, the response to that bit of wisdom would have be, “Enough already!”
I’m referring here not merely to torrential rains and soggy fields, but more poignantly to the dampening effects of adversity brought on by tough opponents, injuries and the scarcity of wins.
As the teams got set to play on this late September afternoon, the memories of their October 2, 2009 night clash came to mind and while this year’s young Sullivan West squad currently fields only one veteran from that fray in Hannah Feinman, you can be sure that the Monticello elder stateswomen remember it all too well.
Back in October of 2009, the last time these two teams played, Jordan Fredell received a bloody nose from the intense action. No doubt, she and other Montie veterans remember it well making this day's win that much sweeter.
The photo of Jordan Fredell with blood emanating from her nose says it all about that over-the-top physical game appropriately named “Cats and Dawgs.”
That fray was won by the Lady Bulldogs who nearly saw a 3-0 lead turn into a stultifying defeat at the hands of the fiery Lady Monties who tied it up with just six minutes left to play. Perhaps the soccer gods saw fit to give the two teams a year off from each other before aligning the stars for this rematch.
For Sullivan West Coach Mike Ellmauer, the prospect of fielding a young team populated by one freshman and nine sophomores to go alone with three juniors and eight seniors was already going to be a challenge.
That was before a spate of injuries began to take their toll. Senior Stephanie Hauschild is out for the season with what may be a torn ACL. Amanda Rosenberger missed time from a knock in the head. Keeper Jordan Parsons has been to the school of hard knocks and on it goes.
Parsons left her cleats in her locker and couldn’t man the cage this day, leaving the task up to junior Cassidy Sauer, more agitata for Ellmauer who still hoped his team could muster the moxie to sunder the struggling Lady Monties who had only one win to date coming into this game.
Hope is one thing; reality is often another. Monticello quickly took advantage of Sullivan West’s inexperience which manifested itself most assuredly in its recurring inability to kick the ball out of its own end, make effective throw ins and goal kicks and pass the ball to people in space.
The result was that nearly the entire game was played in the Sullivan West end.
Sullivan West kicked off but the Monties had it almost immediately as Jordan Fredell, Annie Purcell and Kerissa Bennett all got touches on the first Lady Panthers’ push up. Sauer was called upon to make a save right away, a preview of coming attractions as the view of charging white jerseys was going to become a familiar sight erelong.
Monticello's Stef Viera heads the ball between Sullivan West's Amanda Rosenberger and Giselle Vega.
When Sullivan West failed to clear a goal kick, Purcell, Monticello’s talented year-round soccer maven drove it home just 3:09 into the first period for the 1-0 lead on an assist from Mara Resnick.
Sullivan West freshman Carly Grishaber fired one on goal but SW couldn’t hold the ball in the Monticello end. Monticello won the majority of the 50-50 balls, but Sullivan West tried to use its speed up front with Feinman and Rosenberger to make something happen.
Feinman got a breakaway and nearly scored as Monticello freshman keeper Katrina Zicot held on for the save.
Purcell was getting her fair share of shots, looking for her second goal but she failed to hit the mark. Montie sophomore Katelyn Radlein fired one on goal and missed. A subsequent push by Feinman saw the ball quickly swerving back towards Sauer as the Monties took the ball back. Becky Mitchell to Mara Resnick resulted in a missed shot but the Monties kept up the pressure.
Rosenberger sent it up to Giselle Vega on the right corner but Monticello’s back line defense was proving to be effective in kicking the ball out.
Purcell fired a shot as Sauer was out. That led to a corner kick which hit Kerissa Bennett on the top of the head. A biz dizzy but grinning, the feisty forward played on. Monticello passed the ball effectively but continued to struggle to finish as shots were often poked or sent wide.
Sullivan West backline defenders Kassie Thelman and Katie Taylor were doing a good job of keeping things out of harm’s way.
That is until Mara Resnick scored at 27:18 in on an assist from Kerissa Bennett to make it 2-0. Resnick sent it in to the left side of the net as Sauer lost the ball, leaving Resnick free to poke it in.
Rosenberger had a nice shot from Rosenberger that crossed in front of the goal but Sullivan West had no one at the opposite post to drive in a goal in what was a vast empty space.
Cats and Dawgs war veteran: Sullivan West's Hannah Feinman was a freshman the last time these teams went at it. The speedy junior had her breakaways but couldn't connect this time out. She'll try to reverse that outcome on October 11 when the venue switches to Lake Huntington under the lights.
Monticello nearly scored off a corner kick. Purcell’s subsequent corner kick went behind the goal affording the Lady Bulldogs another charge up the field. Feinman’s shot, like Rosenberger’s prior one just needed someone at the opposite post to send it in. Again, no one was in position..just another manifestation of the steep learning curve this team will have to surmount.
Monticello took the 2-0 lead into the halftime break.
Monticello picked up where it left off with an attack led by Brianna Miller. A third goal eluded the Lady Panthers as they didn’t follow shots that sat in front of the goal at times or dangled in front of the opposite post.
In a scary moment, Grishaber had to be helped off the field after injuring her knee. Needless to say her absence was yet another blow to the already depleted SW troops. The nature or extent of her injury was not known at the time of this writing but she was unable to play the rest of the game. She insisted on standing for the handshake.
She is the last of the Grishabers and follows in the footsteps of her brother Logan and sister Shelby. The trio share a tough, gritty work ethic even in the face of injury and adversity. Here’s hoping Carly is okay and back at it soon.
Monticello would score its third goal as Heather Miller drove it up the field and fired an unassisted goal in at 15:13. That would be the end of the scoring for the match.
Zicot recorded three saves for Monticello; Sauer had 15 for Sullivan West.
Monticello Coach Bill Stento was clearly pleased with his team’s play. “We got off to a rough start down at Port. We had gone to a five-man midfield with two forwards and it really wasn’t working. So we went back to three and today it really clicked.”
Stento added, “The experience shows. I had these girls when they were freshmen and sophomores and now they’re juniors and seniors. They’ve been playing together at this level for two years. I’ve told the girls the wins we get won’t necessarily be pretty, they’re more apt to be scrappy”. Monticello faces Burke on October 3.
Kaboom! Kerissa Bennett bangs in goal to the right side of the net to make it 2-0, the Monticello lead at the half. Heather Miller punctuated the win with a goal in the second period..
Sullivan West Coach Mike Ellmauer sized things up this way: “We get to play them again and hopefully we can pull something out in the second half of the season.” Ellmauer alluded to his team’s inexperience and nagging injuries as “The things that are killing us.”
Ineffective throw-ins, goal kicks and a failure to clear the ball are major issues as they keep the team back in an ongoing defensive posture leaving people out of position for an attack when the opportunity presents itself.
Sullivan West (3-5) is also 0-2 in the division. “We’re trying to make the best of it,” Ellmauer said.
For the hard-working Lady Bulldogs, the hope is that with the experienced gained over the upcoming games that they can trigger a change in the weather to emerge from this early gloom into the brighter light of late season success.
They’ll host Monticello under the lights on October 11. I guess we’ll call that one “Cats And Dawgs III.”
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