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11/07/2015 11:00 PMGirls’ Soccer
The 3rd-seeded Warriors were matched up with the No. 2 seed Morgan Huskies in the Shoreline Conference Girls’ Soccer Tournament semifinals on Nov. 3. Valley dropped a tight, 1-0 decision in a defensive battle at the Indian River Complex in Clinton. Neither team could break through as the offenses didn’t find many chances at the goal all game. With limited opportunities, the squads went into the half deadlocked at 0-0. In the second half, Morgan senior Josie Sullivan scored the game’s only goal in the 47th minute when she booted a 20-yarder past Valley’s senior goalkeeper Gabby Giangrande, who stopped seven of the eight shots she faced on the day. The Warriors did have a few chances to score as the ball sailed just right of the post on one shot and another was a bit high off a header by Sydney Lee. Valley was outshot by Morgan 8-3 in the second match between the teams this season with both ending in 1-0 losses for the Warriors.
“I’m proud of the girls. We played tough. It was definitely a physical game and I thought we played with great heart and matched their intensity,” Coach Allyson Pitney said. “We played as one team and not individuals and Gabby was great in the goal for us and made some terrific stops, but unfortunately, we made one mistake and Morgan made us pay for it and we didn’t capitalize on our opportunities and that was the difference.”
Valley is now headed to the Class M State Tournament with a 10-4-3 record.
Field Hockey
Playing at North Branford in the Shoreline Conference Tournament semifinals, No. 3 seed Valley took a 2-1 defeat to the 2nd-seeded host Thunderbirds on Nov. 2.
“We lacked some spark today. But I certainly do not want to take anything away from an outstanding North Branford team that was well-prepared and ready for us and deserved the win,” Coach Beth McCabe Powers said.
The Warriors fell behind 1-0 early when the T-Birds’ Emmy Norton scored and that was the way it stood heading into the break. In the second half, Emily Peterson tied it with a goal for Valley off an assist by Francesca Daniels just one minute in. The defenses dominated from that point on until there was just over five minutes to play, when North Branford took a 2-1 lead on a goal by Sydney Hogan. Valley fought back valiantly, but couldn’t slip one past the T-Birds’ keeper.
“North Branford is an excellent team and they came ready to play. We came out a bit too tentative in the first half and seemed to be working hard to catch up the rest of the game,” McCabe-Powers said. “It was not our day today. Logan Burdick had an excellent game in goal. She made some very tough stops.”
Valley was outshot 10-5 and Burdick stopped eight of the 10 shots she faced in the game. It was the Warriors second loss this season to North Branford. Earlier in the year, they lost a heartbreaker in overtime, 3-2. Valley fell short of its goal to get to the conference final, but still owns an impressive 11-4-0-2 record on the season and is looking to make some noise in the Class S State Tournament.
Francesca Daniels, Katie Amara, and Christine Donovan were named First Team All-Shoreline Conference, Brianna Adams was named to the Second Team, and Logan Burdick, Lindsey McKeon, and Laura Quinn were each Honorable Mention.
Volleyball
The 4th-seeded Warriors dropped a 3-2 decision to No. 5 Cromwell on Nov. 2 in the Shoreline Conference Tournament quarterfinals. Valley got out to a good start by taking the first two sets by identical 25-18 margins. Cromwell fought back and won the next two sets with scores of 25-22 and 25-11. In the fifth and deciding frame, the Warriors fought hard, but took a 15-13 defeat and were eliminated from the tournament. Sofia Cullina finished the match with one ace, 13 kills, 14 receptions, and nine digs; Michaella Pace had six kills, 30 assists, and six digs; Carly Zuppe came up with 24 digs; and Jessica Paholski had 14 kills for Valley, which is now 14-7 heading into the Class S State Tournament.
“It was a tough night for us. Cromwell was coming off a big win against East Hampton and they were playing well,” Coach Kathy Scott said. “The first two sets, they weren’t making many unforced errors and we were struggling in our serve receive. Then we settled in and started playing the way we practice, putting pressure on them. The last set was an exciting one and we were up, but Cromwell came back to win 15-13.”
Valley had several players honored on the All Shoreline Conference Team. Setter Pace was named to the First Team, Second Team honors went to libero Zuppe and outside hitter Cullina, while middle hitter Sadie Swap was Honorable Mention.