Thursday, September 13, 2007

By Rich Barton
NJS.com Staff Writer

Dana Corasaniti (6) netted a first half goal and Hawthorne made it stand up in a 2-0 win over Waldwick that kept the Bears unbeaten.

WALDWICK – Both Hawthorne and Waldwick came into this season similar aspirations. They each had visions of winning B-PSL titles; Hawthorne in the King Division and Waldwick in the Carpenter. Although Glen Rock and Eastern Christian are the favorites in those respective divisions, both the Bears and the Warriors are not far behind.

A good measuring stick of which team is in better position to make a run at a title came on Wednesday when the two teams faced off against one another. Hawthorne used the game as a chance to open some eyes and turned to its leader to do just that.

Senior center midfielder Dana Corasaniti created havoc all over the field and scored a goal to put Hawthorne ahead in the first half. Ellen Chapin added a goal late to put the finishing touches on a 2-0 win.

“This is a big win for us after losing to them last year,” said Hawthorne head coach Gus Schell. “I knew coming into this year that Waldwick was going to be one of the better teams in the league. I thought we played to our strengths much better.”

Julie Wilkerson finished with seven saves for Waldwick, which suffered its first loss of the season.

The first 15 minutes of the match were filled with end-to-end action and scoring chances for both sides. Hawthorne nearly took the lead less than three minutes in when Katie Goitz stripped the ball from a defender and went in on a breakaway, but her shot went just wide of the far post.

Waldwick had a chance of its own 12 minutes later when Hawthorne goaltender Kara McNish collided with the Warriors’ Mimi Kocela on a loose ball. Freshman Valerie Bedrock looked to have an open net to shoot at, but the Bears’ sweeper, Robyn Neri, blocked the shot and cleared it out of the box.

The remainder of the first half was all Hawthorne as it won loose balls and created numerous scoring opportunities. The Bears had three point-blank scoring opportunities in a nine-minute span before finally cashing in on a fourth in the 29th minute.

Jackie Strasser tracked down a ball in the corner and crossed to the near post. Corasaniti collected the ball with a defender on her back, turned quickly to lose the defender and then fired a shot past Waldwick keeper Julie Wilkerson from 8 yards out, giving the Bears a 1-0 lead.

Ellen Chapin (11) scored a second half goal to give Hawthorne a cushion.

“I took so many shots in the first half and I just wanted one to go in,” said Corasaniti. “I felt the defender on my back. So I just turned, took a shot, and hoped for the best.”

The Warriors were able to mount some offense in the second half, but they were unable to net the equalizer. In the 56th minute, Bedrock, whose brother, James, was the goalie for Waldwick’s section championship team last year, hit a looping shot from 30 yards out that got over the head of McNish, but trickled wide.

With just over seven minutes to go, Waldwick had a last-ditch chance on an 18-yard shot from Jackie Wheatley that was turned away by a diving stop by McNish. Exactly one minute later, the Bears would put to rest any hopes of a comeback.

Chapin, a senior striker, blocked a clearing attempt and scored on a breakaway with 6:20 remaining for the final margin.

Waldwick's Mimi Kocela (right) drew plenty of attention from the Bears' defense.

“I thought we made a big change the way we played in the second half, it just took us too long to adjust,” said Waldwick head coach Vince Criqui. “We beat Hawthorne last year and maybe we took this game for granted. We still have a tough part of our schedule ahead, so hopefully we’ll make some adjustments.”

Hawthorne (2-0) held a slim 13-11 advantage in shots and 4-2 edge in corners. McNish made just three saves to earn the shutout. Wilkerson finished with seven saves for Waldwick, which suffered its first loss of the season (2-1).

“We thought this was a test for us to see where we are,” added Schell. “This is a learning experience for us, learning how to play with a lead and the pressure on. We try to bring it everyday and we held our own today against a good team.”

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