This week's SHFC games -- Week 8

The Westchester Youth Soccer League fall schedule is coming to a close. Some SHFC teams played their last games this past weekend. Another team, the varsity Mustangs, have just started a mini-season now that the season for local high school teams is over. Some SHFC teams also have make-ups to play from when fields were closed for inclement weather. Regardless of each team’s schedule, this late-season play is when a season’s worth of hard work culminates in cohesive team play.

Listed below are each SHFC team, by the players’ birth years, with highlights from their games this past weekend:

2010 Boys All Reds had a great team effort with an amazing 101 passes in a tense 2-1 win over the Eastchester Eagles. Timely goals from Denis Suqui and Leandro Santorum — and clutch goalkeeping from Joaquin Rodriguez and Kellen McGuire — helped Sleepy Hollow prevail on a beautiful fall afternoon at Pocantico Field. Shown in the photos are Denis #11 with his goal and some fancy footwork by Leandro #10.

The All Reds travel to the Castleford Blizzards on November 11. They are coached by Gary Fairley, Oladipo Ashiru and Aaron Lucchetti.

2010 Girls Bandits celebrated a 6-0 victory over the Rye Rush at their home field at Pocantico Hills School. The Bandits are 5-2 overall. The game started strong from kick off with heavy offense by Katie Yalmokas and Ada Chalfy. An early goal by Marianna Patsch secured the lead. Natalia Hargrave and Noa Levine did an excellent job of defending the goal with Sabrina Graham in goal with a great save. Along with Patsch's early goal came goals by Ada Chalfy with an assist by Mackenzie Linhart, goal by Lily Glynn (one of a hat trick) off a pass from Melodie Molina, followed by a goal by Melodie Molina.

The second half consisted of a lot of passing. Marley DeFilippis and Sabrina Graham, now playing midfield, had a few breakaways. The two goals scored in the second half were courtesy of Lily Glynn and her tremendous boot! The girls are looking forward to playing two games this coming weekend. Saturday, November 10 will feature a makeup game versus the Chappaqua Blue at Pocantico at 1:15 and Sunday, also at Pocantico at 1:15, the Bandits will face the Rye Warriors. Go Bandits! See the photo of the Bandits’ muddy practice on Saturday November 3.

The Bandits play two games this weekend. On Saturday, November 10, they play at 1:15 pm at Pocantico Hills School against the Chappaqua Blue. Then on Sunday, November 11 at 1:15 pm they will host the Rye Warriors also at Pocantico Hills School.

2009 Boys United faced the Lansdowne Yonkers Fire. United lost 2-0 but played with heart and kept up with a much bigger opponent. Coaches Gary Fairley, Kurt Pisani and Eric Valenti were especially proud of their team’s strong defensive play.

The United host the Scarsdale Milan at 12 noon on Sunday, November 11 at Pocantico School field.

2009 Boys Red Lions beat a tough Ossining side on the road by the score 2-1. They showed a great overall effort from everyone on the team. Coached by Brad Scheller, the Red Lions hope to continue their winning streak when they travel to the FC Transylvania Barca White on Sunday, November 11.

2009 Girls Red Fury coached by Katie McMahon, Jim McGovern and John Sutherland had a disappointing, but hard fought, loss to Eastchester Reign on Sunday. The Reign had a quick goal at the start of the game. Offensive players Charlotte Spiridakis, Erin Arnegger, Rose Ritz and Dianelly Tovar tried to land a goal to even it up with no success. Luckily the strong defense by Sofia Cruz, Kate Masters Swara Ketkar and Breanne Rodriguez held the Reign from scoring again in the 1st half.

As the second half started, Grace McGovern took over as the goalie for Meghan McMahon. Miss McGovern showed great determination as she came out of the box to make several key saves. But unfortunately, the Reign was able to land a second goal. With shot after shot on goal by Maeve Yox, Rachel Richardson, Breanne Rodriguez and Meghan McMahon, the Fury was able to finally land a goal by Rose Ritz and assist by Meghan McMahon.

The Fury ran out of time and lost 2-1. The Red Fury’s next game is against the Chappaqua Blast on November 11th in Chappaqua.

2008 Girls Red Comets travelled to the Manhattan Ravens and lost 4-0. The Red Comets are coached by Joe Block and Sven Armster. On Saturday, November 10, they will travel to the Quickstrike Patriots to make up a game and on Sunday, November 11, they will host the Chappaqua Cyclones at 1:30pm at Hackley School field.

2008 Boys Fusion hosted the Scarsdale Dortmund for a must-win game to clinch their division. A battle from the outset, Fusion’s pace quick and many attempts saw success at 12’ when a break from Kieran Degen finished with a shot into the goal’s far corner. Scarsdale then had a goal called back for offside, boosting Fusion’s morale and holding 1-0 into halftime.

Scarsdale would equalize minutes into the second half. However, Fusion kept driving the ball forward in a very fast-paced game, with many attempts by each team missing their marks. With about 15’ left to play, Sean Mackiewicz sent a beautiful corner kick to Edwin Dutan, who angled it past the goalie in a textbook set piece. Fusion would hold, despite frenzied play and Scarsdale’s unchecked, very physical approach.

Goalies Justin Paute and Pierce Davis each had some excellent saves, without which the game momentum would have surely turned away from Fusion’s favor. A questionable penalty call late for Scarsdale late in the second ratcheted the tension, but the Scarsdale shot sailed over the post. The final score was 2-1 and Fusion was lucky to walk away with the win against a strong and aggressive Scarsdale side.

Fusions are Jaiden Brito, Pierce Davis, Kieran Degen, Edwin Dutan, Bruno Flores, Dylan Largo, Aiden Lee, Sean Mackiewicz, Jezrael Panama, Ian Papadopoulos, Dylan Pasato, Justin Paute, Raul Socualaya and Jack Zhunio. They take their division leading record of 8-0 to the Pelham Pirates on Sunday, November 11.

2008 Boys River Sharks fell 1-0 at home to the LMFC Blue Knights, who lead their division. With a record of 3-3-1, they will host the Shrub Oak Fusion at 12 noon at Hackley School field on Sunday, November 11. The River Sharks are coached by Ed Greenberg, Gerardo Soto and Michael Glynn.

2007 Girls Blaze In 1998 the New York Yankees won 114 regular season games, which means they lost 48 games. This weekend, the Blaze suffered their first two losses of the season.

Shorthanded with 3 girls unable to attend Saturday's make-up game due to family and other responsibilities, the Blaze played in Ossining against in the Munay Earthquakes who were looking to avenge an earlier season defeat put on them by the Blaze. Eight minutes into the game, Munay scored against Blaze goalie Emily Aridas (who would record 15 saves on the day) on a breakaway, and put another tally on the board just minutes later as well. Zoey Murphy had the Blaze's best scoring chance of the first half but after dribbling past two defenders her strong kick hit the goal post and went out of play.

In the second half, Ossining added three more goals on offsides calls that were not made. For the Blaze, their youngest player, Sammi Marvin went into "Beast Mode" as her mom calls it, breaking through several defenders and made a strong kick that belied her young age. Unfortunately the kick was just a hair too high as it hit the cross bar and went out of play. Blaze striker Lizzie Molina, fed the ball by Gabby Disney, had her scoring attempt turned away, not by the opposing goalie, but by the post. The rebound, handled by Gemma Fante was saved by the Munay goalie who was able to shut out the Blaze. This is the first time the Blaze were shut out all season, and the first time the team coach John Sutherland's squad did not score since losing to the Eastchester All Stars last Spring.

The Blaze did not have to wait as long for their next shut out, as the on Sunday, the Castleford Lions beat the Blaze 4 - 0 at Hackley. Despite 8 saves in the half by goalie Emily Aridas, the Blaze was down 3 - 0 at the half. The Blaze had constant pressure and at least 10 different corner kicks in the second half, but strong shots on goal by Juliana Marvin and Maggie Yalmokis were turned away by the Lions' defense. Strong midfield play by Ellie Fox, Meghan O'Hanlon and Penny McVey continued to feed the ball to the offense, but no one was able to put it into the net, showing how strong defenses are in the WYSL Girls U-12 division. Still smiling and enjoying their pizza after a tough loss, see the Blaze and Coach Sutherland in the photos.

The Blaze, coached by John Sutherland and Annette O'Hanlon, remain in first place in the WYSL Girls U-12 division. They travel to the Rye Running Rock Stars on November 11.

2007 Boys Dynamo fell 8-3 on the road to the LMFC Blue Gunners. They travel to the Somers Galaxy on Saturday, November 10 for a make up game and then to the Chappaqua Revolution on Sunday, November 11.

2007 Boys Dutchmen played a makeup game on Saturday November 3 and were defeated 6-2 by Castleford Mercury at Pocantico. On Sunday, November 4, the Dutchmen visited the first place Briarcliff Beasts. After trailing 1-0 at half time, the Dutchmen could not rally and lost 4-0. The Dutchmen are now 3-4-1 and host the Chappaqua Cosmos on November 11 at 3pm on Hackley School field.

2006 Girls Storm coached by Kevin Richardson and Tom Andruss travelled to the White Plains Black and tied at 3. On Sunday, November 11, they travel to the Mahopac Strikers.

2006 Boys Firebolts coached by Ricardo Gonzalez closed out their fall season with a 2-0 win at home against their in-division rivals SHFC’s own Warriors. The Firebolts final record on the season was 4-2-4. In photos, see their team after their victory.

2006 Boys Warriors played their in-division rivals, SHFC’s own Firebolts, to a 2-0 loss at home. They will close out their season at home, on Washington Irving field on Sunday November 11 at 2:30pm against the division-leading Manhattan Whitecaps.

2005 Girls Cyclones played a beautiful game against Somers Night Hawks winning the game 2-1...with no subs. They played a game of short passes, passing back and waiting for the perfect time to attack on goal. Within 13 minutes, Diana Cordero crossed the ball to Caroline Didden who put it in the net to take the lead. Although our defense was on top of their game, the Night Hawks retaliated and put one in a few minutes later to tie the game. The Cyclones refused to give up and with 30 seconds left until halftime, Shea Bertolocci passed the ball to Diana Cordero and she shot the ball high to the corner of the goal, helping the Cyclones take the lead. We held our own through the second half; our defense played strong and shut down the Night Hawks repeatedly; our offense kept the pressure on and had many shots that just missed the net. Their teamwork and intensity made it a fabulous game to watch. When the final whistle blew, the Cyclones won 2-1. In photos, see their team after their victory.

On Sunday, November 11, the Cyclones host the Port Chester Golden Cats at 11am at Washington Irving field.

2005 Boys Legends prevailed 2-0 at home to Port Chester on the weekend. Excellent defensive performances, especially by Robert and Brayan, laid the foundation for a calm, rolled finish from Kieran and an Alex "Pick the keepers pocket" beauty. 1 point ahead; 2 games to go!

The Legends will travel to the New Rochelle Purple Dragons on Sunday November 11.

2005 Boys Red Devils saw a hard-fought 4-3 victory at home against the White Plains Porto Red, who sit just behind them in their division standings. On Sunday, November 11, the Red Devils will host the Pleasantville Thunderbolts at 12:45 at Washington Irving field. They are coached by Francisco Mendieta, Mark Taylor and Cedric Smith and are 7-0-1 on the season, sitting in first place in their division.

2004 Boys Argentina hosted the Edgemont Cyclones, prevailing by a score of 6-0. Footage from the game can be viewed at:

https://youtu.be/w5p5qnaXsJU

Coached by Luis Lewis, Argentina has a record of 5-3 and faces the White Plains Black on November 11 at 9am at Washington Irving field to end their fall season.

JV Girls Aguias fell 5-1 on the road against the Harrison Wildcats. They are 2-5-1 in Division 1 JV play. They travel to the Riverdale United on Sunday, November 11.

JV Boys Los Gauchos travelled to the Rye Barca and lost 1-0. They are 2-4-1 in Division 1 JV play and are coached by Luis Lewis, Bill Julian and Pepe Monteforte. Los Gauchos will travel to the Don Bosco Hawks Storm on Sunday, November 11.

Varsity Girls Mustangs opened their varsity club season with an impressive 2-1 victory over the older, visiting West Side Red Bulls. Early in the game Abby Oppenheim found a tight seam to send a through-ball to Melanie Urgiles. The Red Bull center back was able to get a toe on the pass, but not enough to keep it from getting to Melanie in stride. Melanie took the ball from thirty yards out and with perfect touch and composure beat the Red Bull keeper for the first score. In the second half Mustang passing was on display when Maya Weitzen send a ball wide to hustling Sophia Khosrowshahi who fought to place a perfect cross to well positioned Melanie Urgiles. Melanie stopped the ball, aimed, and easily scored. The Mustangs appeared to take control of the game as Britany Alban’s ball control mastery and beautiful possession soccer had the visitors frustrated until a defensive lapse allowed a nice score by the visitors. Late in the game, West Side Manhattan used their broadway skills to get a penalty kick on a well feigned flop. In her last significant act as a 15 year old, keeper Julia Costa saved the penalty kick and preserved the Mustang victory.

The Mustangs are the first Sleepy Hollow team to play at the varsity club level and have been together for seven years. The varsity level is comprised of players born in 2001 and 2002, while the Mustangs find themselves the youngest team in the league with only 5 players born in 2002, 7 in 2003, and 5 in 2004. The girls have been playing hard since August for their four different high school teams and Saturday they were happy to be back together as Mustangs. This Saturday they face a tough New Rochelle team on the road.

For updates or more information about SHFC, please visit http://www.sleepyhollowfc.com.