November
4, 2006
BAYONNE – Holy Family Academy has been the class of the HCIAA girls soccer scene over the past several years and it has the league championships to prove it. However, over that same span HFA has struggled when matched up against top competition in the Non-Public North A state tournament.
With a one-year reprieve of moving down a level to Non-Public North B, the Falcons had a chance yesterday to go where no team in school history has gone before: to the sectional semifinals. But to do that, they would have to stare right in the mirror and face a Hawthorne Christian team that also was looking for its first sectional semifinal berth.
Holy Family’s Caitlin Veverka is making a habit of scoring clutch goals and once again came through when the Falcons needed one. Her header in the 61st minute proved to be the only goal of the match as the Falcons earned a trip to the Parochial B North semifinals with a 1-0 win over the sixth-seeded Defenders.
“I knew how important this game was for us, especially going into Sunday’s (HCIAA) final against Bayonne,” said Veverka. “We didn’t want to go in that game on a losing note and we knew this was going to be a tough game.”
The Defenders won their final three games before the cutoff just to qualify for the state tournament and represented themselves well, especially early in the contest. They had several solid scoring chances, the best of which came with 12 minutes remaining in the half. Katie Apollo beat an offsides trap and had a shot from 18 yards out that missed just wide.
Holy Family also had a quality scoring chance just before halftime when Samantha Pangano settled a ball off of her thigh on a Rosalia Barberi corner kick. The ball nearly trickled in, but was cleared off the goal line by Brianna Kovacs and game remained scoreless into the second half.
Hawthorne Christian started off hot in the second half and once again nearly scored six minutes in. Liz Apollo split two defenders and broke in on goal, hitting a looping shot from 20 yards out. Falcons’ keeper Katie Wilson retreated back to the goal line just in time to make a fingertip save, setting up Veverka’s heroics.
On a Barberi corner kick, the Falcons used their noticeable height advantage to net the game-winner. Danielle Dundas was at the near post and flicked a header along the goal line towards the far post. Veverka headed it down and past Defenders’ goalie Elizabeth D’Amelio to put the Falcons on top, 1-0.
“I just threw my body at it and got enough of my head on it to knock it in,” said Veverka, who also scored on a header in Tuesday’s HCIAA semifinal win over McNair Academic. “I try to use my height to my advantage and I was just hoping I could put it in.”
“Their height was a factor on free and corner kicks and they were able to get one on us,” said Hawthorne Christian head coach Jane Brain. “We had our chances in both halves, but we weren’t able to get one in the back of the net. It was a very even game and it was bound to be a 1-0 game one way or the other. I’m proud of how well we played, I’m just disappointed in the outcome.”
The Defenders tried frantically to get back in the game from that point on, but they only got off one shot over the final 19 minutes despite controlling possession for a good portion of the half. This was largely due to the stellar defensive play of Holy Family sweeper Sarah West. The senior made two huge plays over the final five minutes to thwart potential scoring opportunities and preserve the shutout win.
“In a big game, we know that we have to play good defense to win,” said West, a first team All-HCIAA selection. “They were a good team and we knew they were going to put pressure on us. I think with us having a lot of experience playing in big games helps us for playing in a game like this. I just tried to get the ball out of there whenever I had the chance.”
Holy Family outshot Hawthorne Christian (8-8-2), 15-10 and received four saves from Wilson to move on. D’Amelio also had a solid game for the Defenders in net, notching eight saves.
The Falcons move on to the section semifinals for the first time in school history and will face second-seeded Villa Walsh. But before that, they will meet with cross-town rival Bayonne for the HCIAA title on Sunday. The two teams, who played to a 4-4 tie earlier this year, will play at North Hudson Park in North Bergen at 2:00 p.m. on Sunday.
“This is a big, big win for us,” said Holy Family head coach Tony Barberi. “We tried some different things to get our attack going, but they were tough to crack. I knew that our best chances to score would come off corner kicks, and we executed it well on the one goal. This is a big step for this team and hopefully we can use that momentum going into Sunday.”
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