The hushed anticipation of the crowd hung heavy in the air, every spectator on the edge of their seats. Senior Sofia Gesser weaved through the Kent Place defenders on the left side of the field to the baseline. One quick look up and a single touch, Gesser sent the ball soaring across the box. In a fraction of a second, Kate Giglio leaped through the defense with a perfect header into the goal.
Up until that point, Kent Place had most of the possession, playing most of the game under Westfield’s 50-yard line. In moments of back and forth, both teams were unable to attempt any shots, giving the impression of a slow game. However, after this play by the Blue Devil’s, energy was brought up and the game turned more competitive.
In a play similar, just 20 minutes later, senior Ella Cadigan dribbled wide up the left side with a strong shot on goal. Although the goalie managed to get a hand on the shot, it wasn’t enough to prevent the ball from ricocheting right into the path of Westfield’s offense. Senior Rebecca Xiong took the opportunity and sent a precise shot to the corner, narrowly missing Kent Place’s goalkeeper.
“Going wide and crossing the ball really helped us win today,” said Xiong. “This helped us move the ball quicker and created more chances for us to score.”
Soon after, the Westfield offense continued their surge up the field and sophomore Mary Lane crossed the ball to sophomore Andie Janota who sent the ball straight past the goalie’s dive. Westfield had composure, and they used their momentum to pull away from Kent Place.
After halftime, the Blue Devils would not score again, but they kept the ball consistently between the 25-yard lines and made it a game of possession. The players on Kent Place remained very physical and strong in the midfield, but Westfield was able to stay in control and did not allow them to make any advancements up their defensive side of the field.
When Kent Place did have attempts at scoring, the defensive unit, primarily lead by sophomores Callie Schmidt and Olivia DiGregorio, quickly stopped their efforts and returned possession back to Westfield.
From start to finish, Westfield fans and coaches were getting very frustrated by the referees’ frequent off-side calls. However, the girls did not let this phase them, and because of their composure, they were able to come out victorious, securing a 3-0 win.
Giglio said, “I think we did a great job moving the ball across the field and taking advantage of the sideline to get past defenders. If we keep playing like this we will not have a problem blowing away the competition.”
Looking into how they can improve going into the Union County Tournament semifinals, coach Schmidt said, “I think we can possess a little more around the goal and keep our composure defensively.”
Continuing on in the county tournament, the Blue Devils are set to play Oak Knoll at Kehler on Friday with hopes of securing a spot in the finals.
