Opportunities were abundant for the top-seeded Westfield High School girls soccer team in the first half of its North Jersey, Section 2, Group 4 quarterfinal game against the ninthseeded Ridge Red Devils at Gary Kehler in Westfield on November 7 but none came to fruition. However in the second half, the Blue Devils finally found a chink in the stingy 912 Red Devils’ armor and strutted away with a 2-0 victory.
Junior midfielderAshley Yenawine with an assist from senior co-captain/ forward Audra Toth cashed in with a goal and also assisted senior forward Brooke Morrison on her goal. Junior goalkeeper Sofia Buoscio needed to make just one save. However, due to the Blue Devils’ constant shelling, Red Devil goalkeeper Ava Yu was kept quite busy and recorded 15 saves.
“The game tested our patience, which has been a theme for many of our matches this season. In the first half, we played some excellent soccer, creating solid chances, but Ridge’s goalkeeper came up with big saves, and we had a few close calls. We’re confident in our ability to score and proud of having one of the top defenses in the state. Teams will have to work hard for any goals against us,” Blue Devil Head Coach Alex Schmidt said.
The 16-1 Blue Devils took a number of corner kicks throughout the game and the first one came from the left side in the third minute by Morrison, whose shot caused a scramble high in the box, resulting in a deflection. The next big opportunity came eight minutes in when junior midfielder Emilie Cadigan took a short shot from 10-yards out but she was slightly off course to the left.
Two minutes later, Toth sent a leftto- right cross to Cadigan who was charging down the center, but her shot was smothered by Yu. Moments later, Cadigan returned the favor to Toth, whose shot zinged over the top of the net. The Toth/Cadigan combination continued but every time their attempts for a goal just missed or were stopped by Yu.
Junior centerback Callie Schmidt, with 15 minutes remaining in the first half, launched a free kick from 25–yards out on the left side but Yu was there to catch it. Yenawine ripped a vicious shot that was knocked out of play setting up a right-side corner kick that she also initiated but the ridged Ridge defense held up.
With about four minutes left in the half, another great opportunity was missed on a Toth-to-Catherine Oliveira-to-Cadigan combination. Once again, the height of the Ridge goal was just a little too low for the shot. Two minutes was showing on the clock and Morrison crossed to Cadigan but Yu knocked the ball out of bounds to set up a final corner kick. Instead of lofting a volley into the box, Cadigan took the corner and tapped the ball to Morrison. Cadigan scooted toward the goal and Morrison sent the ball back to her but her shot banged off the crossbar and despite all the shelling, the half was scoreless.
Finally, Yenawine and Morrison would strike gold in the second half, while their defense was impenetrable, to secure the victory.
The victory was the Blue Devils’ 11th shutout of the season. Next on the list would be rematch with the fourth-seeded Elizabeth Minutemen, who defeated the fifth-seeded Scotch Plains-Fanwood Raiders, 1-0. The semifinal showdown with the Lady Minutemen was set for November 11 in Westfield. This would be a get even match for the Blue Devils, whose only loss was to Elizabeth on a penalty kick in overtime.
“We’re excited for the upcoming sectional semifinal against Elizabeth. It’s tempting to call it a redemption game, but credit to them, they beat us, even if it involved a questionable penalty call. On Monday, our focus will be on our defensive basics: delay, deny, and deflect. Elizabeth tends to shoot from distance and often looks for opportunities to draw fouls for set pieces. We earned the top seed to secure home-field advantage, and playing on our larger field will work in our favor, making it tougher for them to settle in,” Coach Schmidt explained.
Ridge 0 0 0 Westfield 0 2 2
