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Edmeston Community News
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Panthers crack
down on 'Cats in girls final
By Dean Russin
Sports Editor, The Daily Star (Oneonta, NY)
ONEONTA _ A Section Four Class
D championship was just a matter of time for the
Edmeston girls soccer team.
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2007 ECS
Girls Varsity Soccer Team
Tri-Valley & Section 4 Class D Champions |
Second-half goals by Amanda Dockstader and Kori Hamm
led the Panthers to a 2-0 victory over Davenport at
the National Soccer Hall of Fame on a cool, overcast
Saturday morning that marked Edmeston's first girls
soccer sectional title. |
The
Panthers, who have a 16-game unbeaten streak,
advanced to a state quarterfinal against Section
Three winner Lyme, which topped McGraw, 1-0 on
Saturday at Cortland State. Edmeston coach Melanie
Mumbulo, whose team fell, 1-0, to McGraw during The
Daily Star Hall of Fame Cup in September, said the
quarterfinal is set for Saturday and likely will be
played at Union-Endicott.
"We made history for our school," said senior
forward Amanda Dockstader, who cleaned up a misplay
by Davenport goalie Katie Goss for a 1-0 lead 2
minutes, 49 seconds after halftime. "We're the first
ones."
Goss, an eighth-grader in her first varsity season,
reached over her head to stop Brittanie Becraft's
rising cross from the right-middle of the 18-yard
box. Although Goss got both hands on the ball, it
spun out of her grasp and fell behind her. An
unmarked Dockstader raced in from the left side and
pounced on the high bouncer, popping in a shot just
under the crossbar for the lead.
"It always helps to score early _ at least first,"
said Mumbulo, whose team won the Tri-Valley League
and Section Four Class D crowns in her ninth season.
"That gave us a chance to settle down a little bit."
Coming off a 5-1 semifinal thumping of Tri-Valley
rival Milford, the third-seeded Panthers (19-2-1)
engaged in a back-and-forth first half against No. 4
Davenport (16-5-1). Wildcats sophomore Holly Waid
shadowed standout forward Kori Hamm throughout the
first 40 minutes, often getting help from other
Davenport defenders to keep the ball away from
Edmeston's top scorer.
Still, Hamm managed to find enough space along the
18-yard line for an insurance goal with 6:56
remaining.
Edmeston again penetrated the right side of the
field before Samantha Martin executed a short,
backwards pass to Hamm at the right corner of the
box. Hamm then glided to the middle and cranked a
left-footer into the top-left corner of the goal
just before a handful of Davenport defenders
arrived.
"The problem is (Hamm) got the break from the middle
on the run," said Davenport coach Ray Preston, whose
girls took a three-game winning streak into the
championship game. "You can't stick her. You've got
to run with her and try to poke it. But the minute
you stick, you're in trouble."
Davenport, which avenged two losses to Downsville
with a 4-1 semifinal upset of the top-seeded Eagles,
failed to finish several opportunities against
winning goalie Susanna Johnson. Credit the Panthers'
defense, which outlined its 18-yard box like yellow
crime-scene tape.
"It was hard for me to work through the
double-team," said Davenport scoring machine Chelsea
Haight, who took the bulk of her shots from 20 or
more yards out. "They shut me down pretty well. I
had shots, but I ultimately didn't capitalize on
them. If they're taking away some part of our
offense, another part has to step up, and we had a
hard time doing that today."
Haight and Preston seemed to harbor no hard feelings
afterward.
"We played really great, but Edmeston is just a
great team," said Haight, who finished with a
team-high 39 goals. "They definitely deserved to win
the section."
Said Preston: "I wish them very well. I hope that
they'll do well against whoever they play."
"Whoever" is Lyme, but it doesn't seem to matter to
Edmeston.
"Whoever we play, we'll step it up and do what we
have to do and finish," Hamm said. "Normally, we
make plans for what we want to do, but the main goal
always turns out to be win."
Edmeston 2, Davenport 0
SECTION FOUR CLASS D Final at National Soccer Hall
of Fame
Davenport 0 0 _ 0
Edmeston 0 2 _ 2
4-Davenport (16-5-1): None.
3-Edmeston (19-2-1): Amanda Dockstader 1-0, Kori
Hamm 1-0, Brittanie Becraft 0-1, Samantha Martin
0-1.
Shots-corner kicks: D 8-10; E 15-2.
Goalies: Katie Goss (D) 9; Susanna Johnson (E) 8. |
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