70°
Westhill High School's girls soccer team pressured Staples early and often in Wednesday's showdown between two of the hottest teams in the league. The Vikings' early pressure paid off as Lizzie Van Name scored in the 10th minute, and the Vikings went on to a 1-0 win at Loeffler Field.
"We definitely wanted to come out hard,'' said Van Name, whose shot from about 12 yards out cleanly beat Staples' goalkeeper Jesse Ambrose. "It always feels good to score a goal and give the team a lift early."
Westhill (7-2-3) dominated the game early. The Vikings controlled the ball early and had the Wreckers (7-2-3) scrambling defensively. After Van Name's goal, Ambrose stopped Julia Busto from close range in the 22nd minute. And in the 28th minute, Nicole Pellicano's blast hit the post. A defender cleared the ball.
Staples asserted itself offensively early in the second half. That caused concern for Van Name and coach Dave Flower, who thought the squandered early opportunities might prove costly. "We spoke about that at halftime,'' Flower said. "We were guarding against that because we knew they would come out aggressive. I'm always happy with how my defenders play."
The Vikings are now 5-0-1 in their last six games and appear poised to make a strong playoff run. All the players are back after some early-season injuries. "I thought the first half was the most complete half of soccer we've played all season,'' Flower said. "Mentally, we're in a good place now. Earlier in the season, we weren't in the right place to win games. It also helps that we're getting our players healthy."
Click here to follow Daily Voice Stamford and receive free news updates.
