Wahconah Girls Shut Out Mount Greylock
DALTON, Mass. -- Freshman Sadie Anderson picked a good time to score her first varsity goal.
And as long as she was at it, she scored No. 2 to give the Wahconah girls soccer team a 2-0 win over Mount Greylock on Saturday night.
Anderson broke a scoreless tie midway through the second half when she put back a rebound after Bri Kasala’s direct free kick from high on the left wing was saved by Mounties keeper Isabella Nicastro (four saves).
Eleven minutes later, Anderson was the beneficiary of a nifty passing sequence that saw her team move the ball from deep in its end up the field in three passes -- the last a through ball from Hannah Ronayne.
“We were really focusing on getting that ball into the center and switching the field,” Wahconah coach Meghan Smith said. “We talked at half-time about the fact that it was being played on one side. So, logically, the other side was going to be open, so let’s get it over there. But it has to come through the center.
“We’ve been practicing really hard on that slotted ball or that chipped ball. They’re reading the field better, and they really did a nice job.”
Wahconah (4-4) came into the night with just one goal in its last three games, and that frustration continued through the first 57 minutes before Anderson was able to punch one home.
Mount Greylock (4-2) had a couple of good chances to even the score in the next 10 minutes.
First, Karen McComish had a good try from the top of the right wing, but Sage Howes (six saves) was able to leap and make the stop.
Then a minute later in the 67th minute, Clara McWeeny took a try from 25 yards out that sailed just over the crossbar.
About a minute later, a Wahconah defender headed a Mount Greylock free kick out of the back and directly to a teammate on the left side. She centered the ball to Ronayne, who dribbled to the midfield stripe before sending Anderson with the through ball. Anderson took the ball to the top of the box and hit a low liner to the left of the diving Nicastro with 11 minutes, 52 seconds on the clock.
Wahconah won despite the services of 2016 all-Berkshire County North Division forward Arden McKnight, who attended the game in street clothes and her arm in a sling after suffering an injury in Monday’s loss at Ludlow. Smith said she is optimistic that McKnight will be able to return to the lineup this fall.
Mount Greylock was shut out for the first time this fall, partly because of the job fullbacks Jess Duma and Abby Wells did containing dangerous striker Madison Ross.
“[Assistant coach Taylor Kenyon] and I come from a background of just containing and pushing out and giving our team time to set up,” Smith said. “So we were really proud of our defense that we were able to contain, push out, let us set up and slow down that situation in the corner.”
Mount Greylock coach Tom Ostheimer said he was encouraged by his team’s performance against the North Division squad.
“We had our chances, especially in the first half when we rung the ball off the post,” he said. “I thought in the first half we carried play. The second half was a little more 50-50, back and forth.
“I think we’ve got a lot to build on. I saw a lot of good possession and a lot of movement off the ball. We’ve just got to get better at putting the ball in the net against the tough teams. We had trouble against Monument and again today. I thought we played well enough to come away with a point, but that’s soccer.”
On Monday, Mount Greylock goes to Sheffield to face Mount Everett, while Wahconah visits Hoosac Valley.