Westfield's Win Pushes Girls Soccer to Championship Match

After a not-so-inspiring first 40 minutes of play, the Westfield girls’ soccer team came out a determined bunch right from the start of the second half in Sunday night’s second UCT semifinal against Summit at Kean University’s Alumni Stadium in Union.

Trailing Summit by a goal as the second 40 minutes commenced, the Blue Devils quickly pressed the Hilltopper defense and continued to do so before they produced the equalizing goal.

Then just when it looked like the game might go to sudden death overtime, senior defenseman Mercedes Smith moved up and came through in the clutch big-time for Westfield.

From inside the penalty box Smith took a pass from junior Alexandra Tinfow (No. 8) and blasted a volley shot over the head of the Summit goalie and into the net.

Smith’s third goal of the season – with just 9:37 remaining – was the game-winner, lifting top-seeded Westfield to a 2-1, come-from-behind victory over fifth-seeded Summit.

“I was pushing forward and trying to get position in front,” Smith said. “Alex got me the ball and I took a shot, which wasn’t the greatest.

“I just tried to kick it as hard as I could and, thankfully, it went in right above the goalie’s head.”

“Mercedes has a deadly shot,” Westfield third-year head coach Alexander Schmidt said. “She was open, so kudos to her for being able to make something happen.”

Westfield lost in the semifinals as the top seed two years ago to eventual second-time champion Cranford in penalty kicks. The Blue Devils did not want that to happen again.

“We wanted to get back to the final so bad,” Smith said. “In the second half it was our intensity and will to win that did it.”

On Saturday night at 7:30 at Kean, the Blue Devils will be going for their record 19^th UCT crown and first outright in 10 years when they take on division arch rival and second-seeded Scotch Plains in the championship match. Scotch Plains was dominant in a 3-0 triumph over third-seeded Governor Livingston in Sunday’s first semifinal at Kean.

The Raiders reached the final for the seventh straight season. They will be going for their sixth UCT crown and fifth outright.

Scotch Plains and Westfield will be clashing in the title contest for the fourth time in the past six seasons.

Scotch Plains never won the UCT until 2005 and continues to reach the championship game every year since.

Westfield won its second straight Sunday to improve to 11-2-1.

Scotch Plains won for the sixth straight time, is 10-0-1 in its last 11 matches and now 12-2-2 overall. GL fell to 9-3-1 and Summit to 8-5-3.

Westfield and Scotch Plains split Union County Conference-Watchung Division games, with Westfield winning 1-0 at home on Sept. 15 and Scotch Plains coming out on top 3-0 at home on Oct. 13.

Westfield has won the most UCT crowns with 18, although its last two have been shared with Oak Knoll in 2002 and with Scotch Plains in 2006.

Scotch Plains defeated Westfield the last two times the teams met in the final, including 2-0 last year and 1-0 in 2007. The last year Westfield won the title outright was in 2001 when the Blue Devils defeated New Providence 2-0 in the final.

The first UCT was in 1981, with Westfield winning the first 11 titles.

Summit took a 1-0 lead with 9:33 to go in the first half when senior three-sport standout Kate Martino moved the ball with her left foot and then drilled a shot with her right foot past the Westfield goalie.

The Blue Devils had a dangerous chance right before the final first half whistle, with one of their shots just going over the crossbar.

After applying immediate, constant offensive pressure once the second half began, Westfield tied the game at 1-1 with 34:35 to go. A ball that was kicked around in the penalty box went off the backside of Westfield junior Sarah Freer and past the Summit goalie into the net.

Summit came back on attack, but was thwarted by Smith when she headed a ball away. Among Westfield’s next best chances was a shot by senior Amanda Marcotullio from the right side that bounced off the right post.

The Summit goalie made an excellent, two-handed save of a shot by Westfield’s No. 20, which was the goalie’s third stellar stop of the second half.

“In the first half we didn’t play the width (of the field),” Schmidt said. “Summit was getting the ball in the middle of the field.

“In the second half we met our objective, using the width and attacking on the outside. The girls also did a better job of keeping the ball away from their best players, like Kate Martino.”

So now we get the Blue Devils vs. the Raiders once more.

“We lost in the semifinals my first year and in the final last year, so – hopefully – we take that next step now,” Schmidt said. “This year we expected to make the final.

“Hopefully, we can give Scotch Plains a better game than we did the last time we played them. I think people will get their money’s worth next Saturday night.”

LAST 12 UCT FINALS MATCHUPS AND SCORES

2011: 2-Scotch Plains vs. 1-Westfield, Saturday, 7:30 p.m., Kean University

2010: Scotch Plains 2, Westfield 0 – at Kean University

2009: Cranford 1, Scotch Plains 0 – at Johnson

2008: Scotch Plains 3, Johnson 0 – at Johnson

2007: Scotch Plains 1, Westfield 0

2006: Scotch Plains 1, Westfield 1 – co-champs

2005: Scotch Plains 1, Oak Knoll 0

2004: Governor Livingston 1, Cranford 0

2003: Oak Knoll 5, Governor Livingston 0

2002: Westfield 0, Oak Knoll 0 – co-champs

2001: Westfield 2, New Providence 0

2000: Cranford 3, Union Catholic 1