Fenton Girls Soccer Team Outlasts Rival Linden

The girls soccer team outlasted rival Linden on Tuesday, riding a second-half offensive wave to a 2-1 victory.

“Tonight we were good,” said Fenton Tigers coach Matt Sullivan. “We’re definitely a grind-it-out team. The one great thing we have this year is athleticism.”

He credited timely “hustle plays,” as well as the team’s speed and aggressiveness during the second half.

Leading the charge for Fenton was senior midfielder Janelle Keyandwy, who had the game’s first goal and later assisted on senior forward Callie Toaso’s goal.

Both girls scored on similar plays, which developed as they crossed the middle of the offensive zone to pounce on loose balls.

“That’s what coach has been telling us,” Keyandwy said. “Be ready in the middle.”

The first half saw strong defensive play by Fenton and Linden, as each team focused on long pass plays instead of aggressive running ones.

But in the second half, Fenton pushed the play.

"Toughness, toughness, toughness” said Sullivan, describing his players' strong physical presence on the field, which he credited to their conditioning workouts and their time in the weight room.

He also praised his goalkeeper, senior Alyssa Ostrowski.

“She was great,” Sullivan said. “She was just great. I was especially impressed with how cool she was.”

He went on to describe how vital her play was in the last five minutes of the game, as Linden put together a string of offensive attacks that the Tigers turned away.

The Eagles had several rushes that resulted on plays on Ostrowski’s doorstep.

“She picked a couple of balls out of the air that could have been really dangerous,” Sullivan said.

Ostrowski credited the defensive players in front of her, whom she said played a calm game and really pulled together in the trenches.

The road win puts Fenton at 4-2-1 on the season. Their next game is at home against Davison at 6:45 on May 2.

Editor's Note: This story has been corrected, and the name of the correct goal keeper has been inserted.