The Old Saybrook girls’ soccer squad is no stranger to dramatics and last week was no exception as the Rams came back from a deficit to tie Shoreline foe Valley 3-3 in double overtime on Sept. 22, which was then followed by a 4-0 loss to Cromwell at week’s end.

The Rams (1-3-2) came out a bit soft in the first half. Valley was beating them to every ball and working much harder and the Warriors were on their heels for much of the half. But with the Rams’ defense playing well, fortunately, the game was scoreless at the end of the first half. 

“We always have good matches against Valley and this year was no exception. Valley is another strong and physical team,” said Coach Larry Bright. “At halftime, I talked to the players about playing much harder and wanting to win. Sometimes players just go through the motions of the game rather than wanting to win. Because of our success last year, teams want to beat us more than usual so our team intensity needs to be much higher all the time. To their credit, the players came out in the second half with a much higher intensity level and we began to create scoring opportunities.”

About halfway through the second half, Allison Bruehwiler found some open space near the Valley goal and got off a good shot that was mistakenly deflected by a Valley defender into her own goal. The rest of the half was back and forth, but toward the end of the game, Valley started to increase its intensity, knowing it needed a score. With about six minutes left in the game, a ball was cleared out of Saybrook’s penalty box right to a wide-open Valley player, who hit a great looping shot into the goal, tying the game at 1-1 to send the contest into overtime.

In the first overtime period, Valley took advantage of its newfound momentum and scored two goals in the span of about five minutes.

During the second overtime, after about three minutes in, the Rams’ Olivia Hills sustained an injury, which stopped play for about 20 minutes.

“During this time, the team was able to rest and regroup and Valley lost some momentum,” said Bright. “Although it was awful to see a player be carted off the field, it was a break the team desperately needed.” 

When the game restarted with seven minutes to go in the second OT, Saybrook played with an intensity unlike anything Bright has seen all year. After roughly a minute-and-a-half, Jocelyn Hanley (who came out of goal to play on the field) made a run down the right side of the field and made a beautiful cross along the goal to an on-rushing Lizzie O’Brien, who hit the ball on the run and tucked it into the corner of the goal, making the score 3-2. 

The Rams dominated the rest of the period, but couldn’t seem to get the tying goal. But with about 45 seconds left in the OT, Riley Roarick—who replaced Hanley in goal—took a quick goal kick. The Rams quickly moved the ball up the field and a long ball was played to Bruehwiler, who made a nice run down the right side. With about 18 seconds left to go, Bruehwiler made a wonderful on-the-ground cross which was tapped in the goal by Anna Chupak, tying the game at 3-3 with 16 seconds remaining.

“Probably the best comeback in the team’s history. It showed that when we work hard with a high level of intensity and determination, anything is possible,” said Bright. “I was extremely proud of the team’s resiliency.”

Old Saybrook followed the tie up with a 4-0 loss to Cromwell on Sept. 25. With more than five regular starters out for this game due to various injuries—namely senior Gabby Rose, who was unable to play due to an injury sustained in the Valley game, which didn’t help as she tends to control the middle of the field—Bright knew it was going to be a tough game for the Rams. “Unfortunately, we played the game in the rain, which made field conditions very difficult. In addition, Saybrook lacked intensity right from the beginning. Wet conditions and lack of intensity against a good team are not a good mix,” said Bright. “Cromwell has a number of experienced players and many of them are very quick so we were on the defensive most of the evening. Cromwell was relentless in their intensity and, unfortunately, we weren’t able to match it. While we held them to just one goal in the first half, eventually the constant pressure broke us down and we conceded three goals in the second half. Injuries are weighing heavily on our ability to compete at a high level. Hopefully, we will be able to get players back in the coming week.”