Sophomore Cheyenne Brito scores two goals as Diman girls soccer dominates game against B-P

FALL RIVER — From the first whistle at John P. Harrington Field Tuesday afternoon, it was clear which side was in control.

Diman dominated possession and shots all game, finally breaking through in the 34th minute before adding three more goals in the second half, including a pair of goals by Cheyenne Brito, as they defeated Mayflower League rivals Bristol-Plymouth 4-0 to improve to 3-1-1 on the year.

"It felt good," Bengals coach Flo Lima said. "I thought we had ball possession the whole game and we distributed the ball well. Our communication’s coming along and I’m proud of the girls, they played well."

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Diman had 28 shots on the afternoon, forcing Craftsmen goalkeeper Brooke Drass to make 12 saves while Diman goalkeeper Skyla Carvalho saw just four shots, all of which went wide as most B-P chances were broken up by the Bengal back line.

"My defense was stellar," Lima said. "No penetration and any time they went through, they just snuffed it out like they’re supposed to."

The Bengals came out of the gates hot, creating a pair of chances in the first q0 minutes. They nearly got on the board in the 18th minute after Drass bobbled an initial save attempt but she quickly recovered and nabbed the ball back before it could cross the line.

About midway through the first half, Diman increased the pressure, forcing Drass to make four saves in four minutes before finally breaking through in the 34th minute as Elizabeth Kinnane fed Filipa Duarte, who cut across the box and turned, sending a shot to the left of Drass's outstretched hands to give the hosts the 1-0 lead.

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The Bengals continued to pressure for the remainder of the half, but went into the break up just a goal and with their 17-3 shot advantage, Lima knew they needed to adjust some things.

"The adjustment we made at halftime was to shoot low to the corners and see what happens and it worked out," Lima said.

Playing with a lead already helped as well.

"It’s always huge playing ahead," Lima said. "Chasing a score is tough to play, so once you score the first one you relax and you can execute your game plan and today it worked for us."

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The shot adjustment soon paid off as in the 50th minute, Kiara Almeida found Ella Botelho in front of net, where she placed a shot in the bottom right corner to double Diman's lead to 2-0.

The Bengals kept the pressure on the Craftsmen, getting off a series of shots before Dakota Garcia sent a through ball up to Brito in the 59th minute and the speedy sophomore put a quick shot past Drass to make it 3-0 in favor of the hosts.

Brito added to her tally again in the 74th minute on another through ball, this time from Dakota Valente, which Brito sent on a low shot into the left corner of the net to make it 4-0 and scuttle any fears of a late B-P comeback.

"(They were) backbreakers," Lima said of Brito's goals. "She’s got speed, her best asset is speed and especially the second goal she scored was a thorough ball and she didn’t trap it, she just banged it (in) and that’s the way it’s supposed to be, so it’s good. She’s doing well up top."

For a team with four of its usual starters out injured, Lima said he was impressed with how the other girls stepped up.

"Once we get them back, we’ll be a little stronger I hope, but the kids we played today did well," Lima said.

As for the Craftsmen, they move to 3-3 on the season.

"I thought the girls played pretty well, Diman did very well with their crosses all day long," B-P coach Tim Croteau said. "They have a very tough defense, very good goalkeeper and we’ll be ready for them next time when they come up to Taunton."

The Bengals return to action Thursday when they travel up to Canton to face Blue Hills (3-0-2).

Taunton Daily Gazette and Herald News sports reporter Cameron Merritt can be reached at cmerritt@tauntongazette.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @CamMerritt_News. Support local journalism by purchasing a digital or print subscription to the Taunton Daily Gazette or The Herald News today.

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Diman girls soccer defeats Mayflower League rival Bristol-Plymouth