- Gone with the wind
By Ryan Canner-O'Mealy/ News
Sports Correspondent
Wednesday, November 10, 2004
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- BRAINTREE
- Over the first 200 minutes of the playoffs, the Dover-Sherborn girls
soccer team did not allow a single goal.
- But nursing a 1-0 lead early in the second half of Tuesday's
Division 3 South quarterfinal, the Raiders gave up three scores in a
10-minute span, helping Archbishop Williams gain a 3-1 win. The Bishops
faced Medfield on Wednesday.
- No. 19 D-S (10-8-3) got on the board first when sophomore Sarah
Cullen scored on a shot from right inside the box midway through the first
period. That score was all the Raiders had to show for 40 minutes of
dominance, in which they had nine shots on goal, compared to just one for
Archbishop Williams.
- Being down by only one goal at intermission was a victory in
itself for the sixth-seeded Bishops (14-4-2), who opened up the final half
with a stiff wind at their backs and a sense of urgency.
- Junior forward Lauren Mahoney got things started for the hosts
with a score on a pass from Katie Kelly, tying the game up and giving her
team momentum. From there, the Bishops kept the pressure on, as sophomore
Jill MacNeil used her speed to get separation from D-S defenders to give
her squad the lead.
- Less than two minutes later, MacNeil headed one in, giving her
team the insurance it would need.
- Trailing by two and kicking into the wind proved to be too much
for the Raiders, who were never able to get back into the contest. It was
quite a turnaround from the first half, when things looked so bright for
the Raiders.
- "The wind and weather conditions were a factor," D-S coach
Francis Okaroh said. "But with our team, once we give up one goal we start
doubting ourselves."
- And Okaroh was left to think about his team's missed
opportunities in the first half, when it had the wind at its back. "When
you're in conditions like that, you have to take advantage and score a lot
of goals," Okaroh said.
- But Archbishop Williams goalie Megan Ryan was stellar in the
first half, stopping eight shots and keeping the Raiders from opening up a
big lead.
- D-S tried to ignite a late rally, but couldn't get any past Ryan,
and Okaroh's team saw their successful season come to a disappointing end.
And while many players were in tears, the coach was able to put the year
in perspective.
- "I told them that I'm proud of them, that they achieved something
that no one expected them to do," Okaroh said. "But regardless, when you
lose you're going to feel bad. "I'm very pleased and this is a benchmark
for the returning players next year."
- As they have been all season, the Raiders were led by senior
goalie Katie Mitchell (10 saves), and senior defenders Jane Harper, Delia
DeBlois and Haley Fitch.
- Despite the disappointing loss to Archbishop Williams, the
Raiders had two impressive wins to start the post-season tournament.
- D-S used its suffocating defense and tremendous goaltending to
advance into the quarterfinals, earning a 2-0 win over Holbrook in the
preliminaries and a 3-0 win over South Shore Christian in the first round.
- As has been the case all year, the Raiders controlled their two
opponents from the back, not allowing either offense to get untracked.
- In the win over South Shore Christian, which entered the game
with just one loss on the year, sophomore Kelsey Schreiner got things
started with the first goal. Freshman Annie Isaacs and junior Julie Acaro
added insurance to help the Raiders to their most successful season in
years.
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