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UWS Week II Roundup: East Conference

05/22/2017, 4:00pm EDT
By Admin

For second consecutive season, Long Island defeats New Jersey at home

ROCHESTER LADY LANCERS 1, NEW YORK MAGIC 1

ROCHESTER, NY - The stage was set for a storybook ending at the Rochester Lady Lancers (0-2-1 UWS East) inaugural home opener. With the match tied at 1-1 and the final seconds of stoppage time winding down, a penalty was awarded to the home side after a tackle in the box. New York Magic (0-0-1 UWS East) goalkeeper Sierra Bonham, however, spoiled the party. She lunged to her right to thwart forward Taylor Wingerden’s kick and the Lancers settled for the 1-1 draw on Sunday afternoon at Wegmans Stadium on the Aquinas Institute campus.

The big stop, one of six saves for Bonham, put the only real damper on the afternoon for the Lady Lancers who were out-played in their first two road games of the season last weekend. Rochester came out of the gate with scoring intent and almost went up 1-0 midway through the first half but Wingerden was denied by the cross bar. In the 32nd minute, forward Alexa Antetomaso would put the home side on the scoreboard, finishing off midfielder Kara Shue’s diagonal pass in the penalty area.

The lead didn’t last long, though, as the Magic drew even at 1-1 when defender Reny Viviana Roncancio Farfan converted on a corner kick by forward Mami Yamaguchi in the 36th minute. The Lady Lancers certainly had their opportunities in a physical second half to score the winning goal but could not convert. Antetomaso had two great scoring chances, including one in the 78th minute off a pass from Wingerden, but didn’t hit the net. Rochester out-shot New York by a 7-5 margin and Lady Lancers keeper Caitie Broderick made four saves.

NEW ENGLAND MUTINY 3, LANCASTER INFERNO 2

EAST LONGMEADOW, MA - The rivalry between the New England Mutiny (2-0 UWS East) and Lancaster Inferno (0-1 UWS East) continued on Saturday night at East Longmeadow High School. The Mutiny took an early lead against the Inferno, but the visitors would battle back on two occasions and force a tense conclusion to the match. But in the end, the home side held on for the important 3-2 conference win in front of 512 fans.

In the third minute, team captain Kate Howarth would receive a pass from midfielder Riley Houle 20 yards from goal and go in on a 1v1 against Inferno goalkeeper Kelly O’Brien (seven saves). The forward fired her shot over the onrushing keeper for the 1-0 lead. After holding the run of play, the Mutiny gave up a goal on Lancaster’s first opportunity of the game. Forward Haley Crawford chipped her shot from 40 yards out over Mutiny goalkeeper Annie Ulliac (nine saves) who was off her line.

New England went right back on the offensive and in the 28th minute, forward Abby Sotomayor collected the ball in the center of the pitch and fed Howarth in on goal on the right flank. Howarth blasted her shot past O’Brien and inside the far post for the 2-1 score. In the 34th minute, Houle received a pass from Sotomayor and sent her shot high over the keeper’s reach and underneath the cross bar for the 3-1 lead. In the 75th minute, Lancaster set up a tense final 15 minutes with their second goal of the match scored by midfielder Traci Mohl.

LONG ISLAND ROUGH RIDERS 3, NEW JERSEY COPA FC 0

SOUTH HUNTINGTON, NY - The Long Island Rough Riders emphasized finishing in practice this week and it clearly showed on Saturday afternoon at Cy Donnelly Stadium. Long Island (1-0-1 UWS East) were on the front foot from start to finish in their 3-0 win over the defending East Conference champion New Jersey Copa FC (1-1 UWS East). Forward Morgan Santoro had one goal in each half and midfielder Taylor Elliott led the Rough Riders as they defeated the 2016 UWS runner-ups for their first victory of the season.

Both teams had their fair share of chances in the first half, but it was Santoro’s goal in the 36th minute that broke the deadlock. Defender Taylor Groth lofted a pass from the right flank toward the top of the box that Santoro trapped, beat a defender then slid a left-footed shot into the far bottom corner for a 1-0 lead. Long Island doubled their lead in the 65th minute on Santoro’s second goal of the game. The forward faked her shot to make a defender miss and then rifled the ball into the corner.

Elliott’s long-range effort in the 78th minute gave the home side a three-goal lead as the Rough Riders defeated Copa at home by a 3-0 score for the second consecutive season. Long Island goalkeeper Melissa Guglielmo made three saves while her counterpart Bristol Pizzuto made six saves. The Rough Riders out-shot the visitors by a 13-9 margin.

WESTERN NEW YORK FLASH 2, NEW YORK SURF 2

BUFFALO, NY - The New York Surf (1-0-1 UWS East) returned to action on Saturday afternoon, traveling to All-High Stadium and battling it out against the Western New York Flash (0-1-2 UWS East) for the second straight contest. New York was victorious in last weekend’s encounter but in the rematch, both sides settled for the 2-2 draw. The Surf held a 2-0 lead in the second half but the Flash would get the vital draw and finish the match strong with thanks to forwards Maddie Pezzino and Carissima Cutrona.

New York were able to capitalize in the 43rd minute when a bending free kick from Meagen Doyle found midfielder Flo Gamby, who was able to put it past WNY goalkeeper Meg Tock (nine saves). The Surf doubled their lead in the 57th minute when Doyle snuck behind the defense and fed a through ball to midfielder Furtuna Velaj to give the visiting side a two-goal lead. The Flash quickly turned on the jets, and in the 61st minute, Pezzino was able to find Cutrona to cut the lead in half.

Chances went back and forth for each side before Pezzino’s dramatic 87th-minute equalizer via her left-footed shot off a cross from the right flank by Canisius standout Margretta Dry. Following the equalizer, New York turned up the tempo on the offensive end in an effort to reclaim the advantage, but the team eventually settled for a hard-fought road point. Surf keeper Danielle Ogrodowski made two saves and the visitors out-shot the hosts by a 11-4 margin.

About United Women’s Soccer (UWS): UWS is a national women’s soccer league sanctioned by U.S. Soccer through the United States Adult Soccer Association (USASA). UWS is a professionally operated league created for teams that meet high minimum standards. The season runs from May until the end of July, culminating in a National Championship match. The UWS player pool is comprised of college players, aspiring & former professionals and international stars. You can follow UWS on social media on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Media can contact UWS Director of Communications Jorma Kansanen by e-mail at Press@UWSSoccer.com. You can visit the league’s official website at UWSSoccer.com. Interested team applicants can contact League Commissioner Joe Ferrara, Jr. by e-mail at Joe@UWSSoccer.com.

Tag(s): News |   Lancaster Inferno  LI Rough Riders  New England Mutiny  New Jersey Copa FC  Western NY Flash  New York Surf  Flower City 1872