Champlain Valley Athletic Conference Girl's Soccer Chazy Eagles @ Saranac Chiefs October 3rd 2020

one on one
Photo By: 
Nathanel Lepage

Saranac senior Lily Gadway steps up to pressure Chazy’s Katie Demers near mid-field Saturday at Saranac Central School. In a game honoring the home team’s seniors and veteran coach, it was one of the youngest players on the field who scored the only goal of the contest as the Saranac girls’ soccer team earned a 1-0 victory at home against Chazy. The Chiefs sought to control the game from the opening whistle, with a strong midfield performance keeping the Eagles at bay. More than 10 minutes had ticked off the clock before Chazy got their first, short-lived, possession in the offensive half. A 23rd-minute corner kick proved to be Chazy’s best offensive effort of the first half. Saranac, on the other hand, was continually challenging the Eagles’ defense. In the 12th minute, Sydney Myers drove to the goal line on the right-hand side of the box and flashed the ball across the face of the goal, but nobody was there to connect. Late in the first half, another fast-developing attack by the Chiefs saw Christon Eden chip a shot toward goal, but goalkeeper Samantha Gonyo was there for the save. The teams entered halftime scoreless despite Saranac’s plethora of opportunities. At halftime, the hosts honored long-time coach mary LoTemplio at the start of what will likely be her final season on the Saranac sideline. After both teams exchanged offensive pressure in the early minutes of the second half, and with the game approaching its second mid-half “mask break,” Saranac finally broke the deadlock in an unusual fashion. Eighth-grader Maddy Wynnik received the ball on the right-wing, just outside of the box, and stepped up just above the goal line. Wynnik sent in what she later admitted was an attempted cross, but the ball found its way on the net. Gonyo got her gloves on it but was unable to cleanly handle it, allowing the ball to slowly roll across the line. Saranac nearly doubled the advantage in the 72nd minute, as Gonyo mishandled a shot from distance and let the ball behind her. Gonyo was able to recover and pounced on the ball to prevent the goal. Down only 1, Chazy continued to push until the very end. The Eagles pushed up in the dying seconds of the game and saw the ball go out for a throw-in just above the corner flag, but the ball had gone too far away from the field. The extra seconds spent chasing down the ball out of play meant the throw came in with only a second left on the clock, which was not enough time to generate any scoring opportunity, sealing the victory for the Chiefs. Gallery

cross
Photo By: 
Nathanel Lepage

Saranac’s Maddy Wynnik prepares to cross the ball in from the left-wing, ultimately scoring the only goal of the Chiefs’ victory over Chazy Saturday at Saranac Central School. Gallery

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