Girls soccer: After senior day win, Clarkstown North hopes to have another magic playoff run
NEW CITY - With Clarkstown North's 3-1 win over rival Clarkstown South on Saturday, the Rams got to enjoy Senior Day and end the regular season on a high note.
They can now turn their attention to the upcoming playoffs, which may evoke some memories of last season's magical run that resulted in the program's first-ever Section 1 title and trip to the NYSPHSAA final four.
These days, however, the Rams don't talk much of the past or last year. Not just because they've moved on or that they're trying to downplay their accomplishments, but more so, they're not done yet.
"We all really want to leave our mark on the program," Clarkstown North senior Alexa Buxbaum said. "Obviously, we made history for our program last year, but our run — it's not over. We're so committed to this program, committed to each other, and we're gonna work hard to keep going."
Scoreboard: Scores, results and more from Oct. 10-16 high school girls soccer games
The Rams celebrated their nine seniors who have played a big part in the program's recent success. They topped things off with a win to complete the season series sweep over the Vikings. Clarkstown North got two second-half goals to break a 1-1 tie and pull away for the victory.
"Everyone was very hyped up coming into this game because obviously it's South and our senior game, and we only beat them 2-1 last time," Clarkstown North senior Hannah McKiverkin said. "Coming in and scoring three goals against them felt really rewarding, and I think as a team throughout the season, we used to be known for being super defensive, but now we've gotten so much better at possessing and goal-scoring. I think that's really helped us in this game."
The Rams are well-aware that the road to a title repeat will be difficult and there will be many challenges ahead in an ultra-competitive Class A landscape that has many teams racing to the top.
However, last season showed them that anything is possible, and defying the odds or enduring an obstacle-filled journey is nothing new to them. They returned 10 of 11 starters from last season, and now older and wiser, they're ready to give the postseason everything they've got.
"There was obviously a lot of pressure on us to show up and sort of meet people's expectations of what we did last year," Clarkstown North senior Ivy Levitas said. "The beginning started off a little bit rocky just because of how much pressure it felt like there was on us, but as the games continued, we're a team that just goes out and leaves everything on the field. We play with our hearts on our sleeves, and we just show up and try our hardest every time. Our team chemistry is definitely one of our strongest attributes."
What it means
The Rams have won a league title and hope to defend their sectional crown as the postseason begins later this week. As for the Vikings, they'll look to shake off a three-game losing streak to end the regular season.
Player of the game
Alexa Buxbaum, Clarkstown North: The Rams were the aggressor for most of the match and she was consistently applying attacking pressure on the Vikings. Buxbaum netted the first two Clarkstown North goals in the winning effort, on Senior Day, and never let up after that.
By the numbers
Clarkstown North (13-2) − Ivy Levitas added the insurance goal. Sammi Caivano chipped in two assists, while Maya Damesek had one assist. Sydney Ferst made four saves in the win.
Clarkstown South (8-6) − Jessie Maraia had the Vikings' lone goal of the game, making Clarkstown North defenders pay for a misplayed ball that allowed her to tie things up at 1-1 going into halftime. Faith Failing had eight saves for the Vikings.
They said it
"The seniors are the heartbeat of the team," Rams coach Bryan Smith said. "They love being a part of this program and representing this town and high school. They embraced the challenge. We'll go as far as they take us."
"I think we put our heads down right after (the Rams' go-ahead goal), then the second goal came shortly after that because we just weren't in it," Clarkstown South coach Nick Jung said. "I'm hoping we can turn it around for the playoffs. We have a really good, strong group, and if they can stay together and keep their heads up moving forward, we'll be fine."
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: Clarkstown North tops Clarkstown South
