Girls soccer beats O’Bryant following loss to Nauset
The Vineyarders’ 1-0 home win over John O’Bryant on Monday afternoon had a lot going for it — long stretches of possession, skillful movement through midfield and around the box, and several promising crosses. It was the finishing that eluded the Purple throughout the afternoon. Of the multiple scoring chances in the match, Josie Welch found the net early on, slotting the ball inside the right post from 20 yards out, 10:09 into the first half.
Several Vineyarders excelled on the pitch, and O’Bryant’s busy goalkeeper, Lavinia Gomes, had a solid day in net.
“Ella Keene had a brilliant game,” Vineyard Coach Rocco Bellebuono said. “C.J. [Walsh] had a good game today. Josie [Welch] had a good game today. We saw things today that we haven’t seen ever, like Waddy [Wadeline Florime-Hall] driving to the line and pulling the ball across instead of trying to take a shot, and Ella Keene getting those crosses in from the outside. All the elements were there. We just didn’t put the ball in the net.”
Last Thursday at home against a powerful Nauset side, MV fell, 6-1. Wadeline Florime-Hall scored the Vineyard goal, calmly putting away a one-on-one chance after controlling a punt from keeper Maggie Best that bounced over the Nauset defenders at midfield.
Field hockey falls to Sturgis East, ties St. John Paul II
The Vineyarders hit a couple of frustrating bumps in the road in their quest for a Cape and Islands League Lighthouse Division crown, losing one game and tying another.
MV traveled to Simpkins Field in Hyannis last Thursday, trying to weather the Sturgis East Storm, and came up a goal short, 3-2. Andrea Morse scored both Vineyard goals. “She did a good job stepping in and just keeping her stick down in front of the goal,” Coach Becky Nutton said.
The Storm played a physical game that kept the Vineyarders off-balance, but the visitors were resolute in their effort. “That game felt disjointed,” Nutton said. “It felt like we were doing sprints from end to end, and not really just maintaining composure when it was our ball, and they gave us a physical game. We had girls left and right walking off to get ice packs, but we didn’t give up. They really poured their heart out in that game, and we’re disappointed.”
Saturday afternoon, MV hosted the St. John Paul II Lions, and the teams played to a 0-0 draw.
The Vineyarders thought they had broken the deadlock in the third quarter, but the referee disallowed the goal.
“Our girls had a scramble in front of the circle,” Coach Nutton said. “Izzy [Blake] got a rebound off the goalie’s pads and pushed the ball into the net as the ref was calling a foul for a foot [infraction] against the other team, which meant a penalty corner, and, even though we felt he should have allowed the goal, he held the decision. So that kind of deflated their sails for a couple of minutes.”
Although they failed to score, the Vineyarders had the Lions on the run throughout the afternoon, and outshot the visitors 14-1. “We definitely maintained possession the majority of the game,” Nutton said. “We kept it in our attacking half and had a lot of chances, just didn’t finish before and after that disallowed goal. We had a lot of chances in the fourth quarter and a lot of fast breaks, but nothing else came through.”
The Vineyarders stand at 5-6-3 overall and 3-1-3 in the C & I Lighthouse, with one division game left at Nantucket on Saturday at 10 am.
Boys soccer edged late at Nauset, ties North Reading on Senior Day
The Vineyarders traveled to North Eastham last Thursday for a Cape and Islands League Atlantic Division rematch with the undefeated Nauset Warriors, and dropped a 2-1 decision on Nate Watring’s goal with five minutes remaining.
Pat Pinto put Nauset up 1-0 midway through the first half. Edgimar Lisboa equalized for the Vineyarders in the second half, bending a shot around the defense, and banking the ball off the post from the top of the box. MV continued to press Nauset in their end for 10 minutes, but couldn’t take the lead.
The Warriors countered with pressure of their own, and Matheus Rodrigues made several big saves. The hosts grabbed the game winner on a tap-in after Rodrigues had the ball loosened from his grasp at the left post and the ball rolled across the goal mouth.
“I really thought we had them and we were going to get out of there with a point,” Vineyard Coach John Walsh said. “We each controlled pieces of the game. There were times when they had better opportunities and Matheus bailed us out, then there was a pretty good portion of the second half when we controlled the game, and couldn’t quite find the right shot.”
Saturday at Dan McCarthy Field in Oak Bluffs, the Vineyarders drew 0-0 with North Reading on Senior Day.
With the exception of junior goalkeeper Matheus Rodrigues, the Vineyard starters — Nick Cranston, Anthony Dias, Andrew DaSilva, Owen DiBiaso, Lucas Goncalves, Edgimar Lisboa, Ruairi Mullin, Nick Pecararo, Rhay Rodrigues and Tristan Scott — are all seniors. All of the seniors, including Filippo Mucci and the injured Juri Alves, were honored after the final whistle.
Unquestionably, the man of the match was North Reading goalkeeper Sebastian Gonzales, who made a world-class save to rob Kaio DaSilva in the second half. DaSilva beat a pair of Hornets defenders at the top of the box and drilled a curling shot toward the top right corner. Gonzales leaped three feet above the ground, fully extended, and parried the ball over the crossbar.
“It was another classic example of dominating and not being able to score,” Coach Walsh said. “We had the lion’s share of possession for sure. We had a couple of really nifty passing plays through their defense in the second half, we just couldn’t seem to find the scoring touch. That’s unfortunate because the season is coming down to the wire, and we need one more win to make the playoffs.”
The Vineyarders (7-6-3 overall, 5-3-2 C & I Atlantic) close out the regular season on the road with two big Atlantic Division tussles, at Barnstable on Friday at 3 pm, and Nantucket Saturday at noon, where the Purple hope to avenge a 4-2 home loss to the Whalers. “We have our destiny in our hands,” Walsh said. “All we have to do is win one to make the playoffs, and if we win two, we may get a home playoff match.”
