Girls soccer: Pearl River holds off rival Tappan Zee in 1-0 win on Senior Day
PEARL RIVER - As any good rivalry matchup goes, there were spirited fans, collective gasps, close calls, near-misses, moments of frustration and seemingly big bounces that could've tilted the momentum either way.
Then, there were Senior Day ceremonies to raise the stakes even higher and add to the emotions of Thursday night.
However, in the end, Pearl River senior Marissa Graziano dealt the decisive blow by netting the lone goal of the game from approximately 35 yards out on a set piece, giving the Pirates a 1-0 win over neighbor Tappan Zee to top off Senior Day.
"It was pretty far out, but on all the free kicks, I just try to picture the free kick in my head before I actually kick it," Graziano said. "I don't usually try to place it or hit it with too much power, I just kind of kick it. That one went in, and it was amazing. I ran to Grace Scrima, who was right next to me, and just being a senior on Senior Day, hitting a game-winner like that, you can't ask for anything else."
Scoreboard: Scores, results and more for Sept. 26-Oct. 2 high school girls soccer games
It broke the stalemate between Pearl River and Tappan Zee. The Dutchmen imposed their will to start the game, but the match remained scoreless at the break.
The Pirates emerged out of halftime with more urgency.
"First half, we were letting TZ win every 50-50 ball, and I told them (Tappan Zee) was running like 90 miles an hour, and we were only going 80," Pearl River coach Diana Gillule said. "If they wanted to win this game, it had to be a 90-90 matchup, then those 50-50 balls become anyone's. When you're two seconds late, and the other girl hits the floor, they're going to get that call and I completely understand that.
"They knew they had to change the momentum of the game. TZ plays more of a kick-and-run style, but that's never been our style, so once they were able to realize that, bring the ball down, play to feet and play the through ball, then we capitalized for about 25 out of 40 minutes on our side, and Marissa's goal was a game-changer."
Pearl River had its early-season challenges, with several losses scattered across an injury-filled start loaded with games against fellow title contenders.
There was plenty of improvising and learning along the way, but since being fully healthy again, they've been a cohesive unit over the last week. The Pirates have strung together three-straight shutout wins, downing Lakeland, Yonkers and, now, Tappan Zee in a five-day stretch. They aim to carry the momentum forward through the second half of the season.
"Those tough games got us to where we are now and it made us closer as a team," Pearl River senior Anna Khalilzad said. "We realized we couldn't keep playing like that. We can't keep going on this shaky road, because we're not going to get anywhere, so I'm really happy with the way we've picked it up."
While it was a frustrating result for Tappan Zee, the Dutchmen are looking to rebound in upcoming games against Nyack and North Rockland.
"We didn't do enough, I think we had our opportunities and they had their opportunities, but they took care of one more," Tappan Zee coach Bill Lynch said. "Helena (Kaczmarczyk) made a couple of nice saves to keep it 1-0 and give us an opportunity to tie it up, but we didn't get one to fall.
"They won the 50-50 balls, got the ball first, which had us backing up, so weren't able to get into a flow. They were always pushing us backward. I think we did a good job with 50-50 balls in the beginning, but they came out and changed the tide. ... We gotta keep our head up and keep working, and if we keep working, good things will happen."
What it means
Pearl River opens league play with a victory and is now on a three-game winning streak. As for Tappan Zee, it's another closely-contested heartbreaker. The Dutchmen have lost three out of their last four games by one goal to Class A contenders Albertus Magnus, Clarkstown North and Pearl River.
Player of the game
Marissa Graziano, Pearl River: As she put it, you can't ask for anything more. The Pearl River senior delivered the decisive scoring play on Senior Day on a highlight goal, but she also chipped in with her tenacity and winning possession of the ball to thwart the Tappan Zee attack.
By the numbers
Pearl River (5-3-1) ā Sophomore goalkeeper Kelsey Miedreich made nine saves, including one on a first-half penalty kick attempt for Tappan Zee to keep the game 0-0.
Tappan Zee (4-3) ā Sophomore goalkeeper Helena Kaczmarczyk also had an admirable effort in goal, finishing with 10 saves and stopping several close-range and second-chance shots to keep the Dutchmen within reach.
They said it
"It's a great senior group, most of them I've had for the past four years," Gillule said of the Pirates' nine seniors. "We've been together and this senior group wants it more than anything else. The pieces of the puzzle have to come together and in the beginning, it wasn't, and now the puzzle pieces are slowly forming. I think the second half of our season, things are going to be a little bit different for us. Going forward, they're going to be more successful than people are going to think."
"Last year, for us, we tied Clarkstown North in last year's Senior Day, and we all felt like crap after that," Khalilzad said. "Now, coming out here and winning our Senior Day, it's kind of special for us."
Follow Eugene Rapay on Twitter at @erapay5 and on Instagram at @byeugenerapay.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Section 1 girls soccer: Pearl River holds off Tappan Zee on Senior Day
