Sleepy Hollow Football Club - Week 6 - Game Recaps

This past Sunday, May 17th, Sleepy Hollow Football Club had a full slate of games. Having come through two thirds of the season the teams are fit and have rounded into form. So too has the opposition. This past week saw spirited play all around.

There are a few teams playing in tournaments this upcoming weekend, but for the most part the teams are taking a weekend of R&R before returning for the final third of the season on May 31st.

SHFC and Tarrytown/Sleepy Hollow AYSO have been invited to join the Tarrytown Sleepy Hollow Memorial Day Parade. Kids can gather in their Red or White uniforms in front of the Music Hall on Main St. at 8:30 AM. They march north on 9 to Beekman and head down Beekman before doubling back on North Washington for a ceremony at Patriot’s Park.

Here are the updates submitted by the SHFC coaches for last week’s games.

U9 Girls – Magic

The SHFC Magic fell to the Chappaqua United Blue by the score 2-0. A flurry of offensive pressure and scoring tries early in the game staked Chappaqua to a lead only minutes into the first half. Despite some aggressive defense and strong goalie play by #3 Emily Orellana, the Magic found themselves trailing by 2 goals. But the Magic showed resilience and picked up their level of play for the remainder of the game. Led by captains #8 Sophia McLaurin and #5 Emily Rypka the girls stifled all surges by Chappaqua. Several second half offensive opportunities by the Magic led to multiple shots each by #14 Anastasia Mazon and #12 Natalie Rypka, but none found the back of the net.

U9 Boys – Sentinels

The Harrison Rockets were a formidable opponent with a strong offense. They bested the first score of the game which forced the Sentinels on the defensive. Towards the end of go first half, the Sentinels fought back to tie the game. The Sentinels continued to fight hard scoring again in the second half for the win (2-1). Go Sentinels!

U9 Boys – Warriors

1 point is better than none. The Warriors came away from playing Castleford Wave at Bedford with a 2-2 tie. The first goal went in by Wave after 30 seconds. The Warriors woke up and Callum Gallagher put 2 in the back of the net with an assist from each of the Jercinovic brothers. A Warriors handball in the box unfortunately tied the score as Castleford converted the penalty awarded.
There were many great defensive plays and passing by all members of the team as they show great improvement in the higher division. Next the Warriors take on John Jay Rage. More points are needed as they wind down the season if they are to avoid relegation.

U10 Girls – Red Angels

On Sunday, the U10 girls Red Angels, this week captained by Isabella Levine, lost 4-2 against the Pleasantville Warriors. The Red Angels went up 2-0 in the first half on goals from Isabelle Murphy and Samuella Schroeder, each with great assists. The Pleasantville Warriors responded strongly with 4 goals from long range. Ajsa Orban played terrific goalie for the Red Angels, making countless stops.

U10 Boys – Legends

Legends headed to Chappaqua over the weekend for their latest skirmish and came home with a hard fought and well deserved 2-1 victory. The boys had most of the possession in the 1st half with a goal from Julian B from a through ball from Kyan. That was cancelled out by a neat chipped finish on a fast break from the home team. Shortly after, Keeper Max made an astonishing kick save from another Chappaqua fast break. The boys applied consistent pressure in the 2nd half with 76% possession and territorial dominance, with Sweeper Nikhil W rejecting all attempts by Chappaqua to advance through the middle. After severely denting both posts and giving the opposing keeper a full workout, the winner came from a rasping left footed drive from Kieran O that ricocheted off a defender and the keeper on the way in.

U11 Girls – Strikers

The Strikers traveled to Rye to take on the Dragons. It was a hot day and we had a full squad, much needed for the players to rest and rehydrate. The team started strong by possessing the ball and building strong attacking opportunities. The pressure paid off after 13 minutes with the Strikers first goal by Melanie. She was able to knock in a deflection from the keeper attempting to save Shennah’s hard shot. Rye was able to tie the game up right before halftime with a ball that the Strikers were unable to clear out of the penalty area. The second half saw more ball possession with the team putting together really nice passing that kept the home team on their toes. Such accurate passing lead to the go ahead goal made by Sabrina in the 34th minute. This was followed by a second goal by Sabrina in the 36th minute. In the 44th minute Melanie was taken down in the penalty area resulting in a PK. Melanie stepped up but sent the ball just over the crossbar. The defense, Grace, Arianna, Anna, Dylan and Kiera and GK Alicia did a great job not allowing the Dragons to build up any threatening attacks. Strikers win 3-1 on the road.

U11 Boys – Tornadoes

The Tornadoes fought to their third tie in a row last Sunday in a sloppy tangle at Scarsdale Benifica. Quickly going down 0-2, the Tornadoes were awarded a direct kick just outside the penalty box, which Monteforte scored with a textbook arc over the line. However Benifica made it 1-3 at half. In the second half Taylor served up a perfect assist to Burnett, and in the final minutes Ribeiro equalized with a brilliant long strike. Keepers Ribeiro and Saquipay would have made Tim Howard proud througout. At the Memorial Day break the 2nd place Tornadoes nonetheless remain the only undefeated team in their division. They meet the Harrison Eagles on May 31.

U12 Girls – Mustangs

The Mustangs had another competitive week in division 2 play. They faced the top ranked West Side Red Bulls who had beaten them 4-0 in the opener. The Mustangs were playing on their new home field at Hackley as Washington Irving is beginning construction to replace the grass with artificial turf. The Mustangs came out with a new look defense with Caroline Grimes moving back from her midfield position. She played so well with Annie Dineen, Emma Clarke, and Lily Rodriguez that Maddy Navin and Julia Costa were free to apply offensive pressure. The Mustangs struck first with a goal by Talia Fante off an assist by Maddy Navin. The Red Bulls were able to tie the game before the half when their speedy forward outpaced the fastest Mustang defenders on a breakaway. Despite controlling the midfield and playing most of the game in Red Bull territory, fatigue and mental mistakes set in as the Mustangs fell 1-3. The effort of shorthanded Mustangs pleased coach John Sutherland and showed that they belong in division 2.

U13 Girls – Horsemen

The Horsemen fell to the division-leading Mt. Pleasant Wildcats.

Enjoying the quality of their new home-away-from-home at Hackley’s Benedict field, the Horsemen gave the undefeated Wildcats all they could handle in the first half of the game. Only a fantastic reflex save by the Wildcat keeper kept the score even at 0-0.

Anabel Ives opened the scoring for the Horsemen chipping home from twenty five yards out right off the second half restart. The game became a back-and-forth affair with the Wildcats netting a goal from distance ten minutes later.

The heat and humidity took its toll on both sides and the pace of play slowed until the Wildcats took the lead off an own goal about fifteen minutes from time. The Horsemen mounted renewed pressure on the Wildcat goal but were unable to even the score and went on to concede another goal just before the whistle sounded.

The Horsemen certainly deserved a better result having played their best game of the spring so far and have two weeks to prepare or their next fixture.

U13 Boys – Tornadoes

It was a blistering 85 degrees at the Tornadoes home game versus the Riverdale Leprechauns. After a disappointing loss last week, the energy was high as the offense kept possession for most of the first half with their best passing effort of the year! Keeping formation and filling empty spaces in the midfield kept the Leprechauns defense on their heels with shot after shot on goal. 12 min 40 sec in Abbijae Weltig punched one in from the left side. As the final minutes of the first half ticked away the score remained 1-nil with the Tornadoes in full control. As the afternoon sweltered on, the Tornadoes lost a little of the fire to open the second half and the Leprechauns began defending better and offered a few strong pushes of their own. Not to worry, the midfielders perked up after several strong saves by the tremendous efforts of goalkeeper Nolan Fairley and the pressure turned back on the Leprechauns as the offensive barrage began. Mayran Oliveira struck twice and Abhijay Weltig added his second tow put the score at 4-nil. Before the final whistle DJ Cronin would not be denied as he hit a tremendous direct free-kick from 25 yards out to seal the day with an impressive 5-nil victory!

U14 Girls - Eagles

The GU14 Eagles playing their fourth straight away game met the Shrub Oak Fundamentals. It was a rematch of the first game of the season in which the Eagles lost a closely contested match by 1 goal. The first half started with the Eagles dominating ball possession and pressing the Shrub Oak defense back on their heels. This transitioned to an even balance between the teams. The half ended in a 0-0 tie after the Fundamentals took several shots on goal in the closing minutes that keeper Kasi Muniz handled in brilliant fashion.
With only 2 players on the bench, the hot sun and turf took its toll on the Eagles in the second half. Muniz continued to be under fire and made several inspired stops causing audible distress from the Shrub Oak parents. The tide could not be held back and the Fundamentals netted 3 before the final whistle earning a 3-0 win.