SVC Kicks It Up A Notch
Photo Courtesy: Bill DiLillo Photography
BENNINGTON, Vt. - Maybe the past was all just prelude for the Southern Vermont College women's soccer team.
Because for nearly 96 minutes on Tuesday at Everett Field, the winless Mountaineers were every bit as good as one of the top teams in the New England Collegiate Conference. Only an overtime goal by Alexandra Fernandes of visiting Becker College ultimately separated the two teams, and allowed the Hawks to escape with a 1-0 victory.
"Today, we played like I knew we were capable of playing," SVC head coach Shawn Holcombe said. "Maybe people finally realized that it's time to step up, that they can't afford to wait any longer. Hopefully, this is when it starts to click - and we start moving in the right direction."
SVC (0-9 overall, 0-4 NECC) accomplished its turnaround despite having three starters on the bench with injuries. The absence of forward Shawnee Webster (concussion) was most noticeable, as the Mountaineers seemed to only be a single touch away from scoring on several attacking sequences in the Hawks' (7-4, 3-0) end.
"Especially late in the first half, it seemed like they were in our defensive end the whole time," Fernandes said. "It was only a matter of time before they would have scored. And if they scored, it would have been game over - we're not the kind of team that responds well once we're down."
Mountaineer LeAnn Healey (three shots on goal) and her mates did manage to mount a handful of sustained attacks on the Hawk net, forcing Becker goalkeeper Alena Phongsa to make five saves. But the real stars for the home team were at the back of the pitch, where sweeper Danielle Celotto and right back Kimberly Bevis in particular showed fearlessness and focus to turn away all but one of the Hawks' offensive thrusts.
"We put a lot of pressure on them," Celotto said. "We did a lot better job of that than we usually do. Everyone just really wanted it, and that made the difference for us mentally."
The onset of the match saw Becker take control offensively; by halftime, SVC goalkeeper Amber Mulhern would already have 10 of her 15 saves on the day. But near the end of the frame, the home team began putting together three and four-touch sequences and establishing some rhythm with the ball.
"Everyone played a role for us today, and that's how it has to happen," Holcombe said.
The Mountaineers dodged a bullet near the start of the second half, when a handball by Celotto in SVC's box went unnoticed by the officials - much to the chagrin of Becker coach Samly Phonesavanh. The Hawks' very best scoring opportunity of regulation came just under 10 minutes later, when senior Alyssa Alves dribbled through a slide tackle attempt by Celotto just off the right post but sent her ensuing shot high over the Mountaineer goal.
"I felt like there were a lot of times that we should have scored," Fernandes said. "The game never should have went into overtime."
SVC's best chance to get on the board occured with 18:35 left in regulation, when Healey gathered the ball near midfield, turned sharply to the outside and created a breakaway for herself down the right sideline. Her shot arched tantalizingly toward the far post, but Phongsa was able to slap it away and preserve the scoreless deadlock.
Another prime opportunity came four minutes later, when an obstruction call on Becker's Catherine Millette awarded Celotto a direct kick from approximately 30 yards out on the left side. The freshman bent her shot perfectly around the Hawk wall, but right into the arms of Phongsa for her final save.
Becker nearly ended things at the 6:34 mark of the extra set, but Millette's point-blank deflection of a shot by Caroline Plunkett once again went high. Fernandes made it a moot point just under 2:30 later, when she slipped back unmarked to settle a bouncing 50/50 ball and tucked a low, bounding shot into the right corner of the home team's goal for her team-leading eighth tally of the season.
Regardless of the ultimate outcome, the Mountaineers left the field with renewed hopes that a turnaround is indeed in progress for the program.
"It has taken us a while, but we're finally learning what each other can do," said Celotto, one of 10 first-year players for SVC. "We're starting to play like a team, as one, instead of like the bunch of freshmen that we are."
The Mountaineers will continue their conference homestand on Saturday, at 1 p.m. against Daniel Webster.
