Mount Greylock Girls Explode for Six Goals in Home Win
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- Halfway through Tuesday’s home game against Springfield Central, Mount Greylock girls soccer coach Tom Ostheimer had seen enough.
Ostheimer called timeout in the scoreless contest with 24 minutes, 25 seconds on the clock and the Mounties getting ready for a corner kick.
They scored off that corner and put in three more goals before half-time en route to a 6-0 win, the fifth straight victory for the Mounties (7-2).
“The timeout was just sort of a wake up call,” Ostheimer said. “I thought we were really playing down to [Central’s] energy level. I didn’t really see them come off the bus with a lot of energy, and that translated into the game.
“And we, in the beginning, were matching their energy. So, the message was, ‘Come on, girls, let’s wake up. Let’s play the soccer we know how to play.’ “
Livia Morales started the game-winning play with a boot from the left-wing corner. Jane Skavlem attempted to head the ball into the goal, but Central blocked it and attempted to clear the ball to the far side of the 18, where Emma Newberry kept the play alive for the Mounties.
Newberry got the ball to Lexi Politis, who took a shot that caromed off a defender and to Morales, who finished for the unassisted goal and 1-0 lead.
Twenty minutes later, Lily McDermott finished on a play that started with Maggie Brody in the midfield. She played the ball forward to Nora Lopez, who sent the speedy McDermott toward the goal with a through ball up the middle.
The Mounties’ third goal came from Skavlem from the right wing side of the 18 with less than two minutes to go in the half.
In the second half, Mount Greylock got another goal from Morales and tallies from Politis and Karlie Dowling -- giving the Mounties six goals from five different players.
“It was a real team effort,” Ostheimer said. “And that’s something we should be really proud of and the coaches are happy about.”
The victory also marked Mount Greylock’s season high for goals in a game and avenged a 3-1 loss to the Golden Eagles in Springfield last month.
That time around, the Mounties were missing Morales and Skavlem, and Brody, who was recovering from an illness, saw maybe a minute on the field, Ostheimer said.
“So we had three key players out,” he said. “And I think [Central] played a beautiful game against us that first time. They hit three long shots on fast breaks, and they have some speed. [Brooklyn Olivero] is good with the ball and [Ava Salvador], I think, had three assists the last time we played them.
“And [Jordan Lee], their speedy defender, just cleaned everything up the first time. Once we figured out, ‘Let’s keep the ball away from her and switch it up top,’ we started getting some good, good looks at the goal.”
Springfield Central’s goalkeepers combined to stop 13 shots. Mai O’Connor made one save to earn the shutout for Mount Greylock.
The Mounties are home on Thursday against Ware.