Girls SoccerThe girls soccer team from Hopewell Valley had a little bit of everything happen to it this past week.
By: Matt Nalbone
In the Lady Bulldogs’ three games, they had one win, one loss and one tie.
The first game was against Trenton, a team that was coming off of its biggest win of the year against local powerhouse West Windsor-Plainsboro South.
The Lady Bulldogs came out strong and played one of their best games of the year, coming away with a 4-1 victory. The win was the ninth of the year for the girls, clinching them a spot in the state tournament their first at the Group III level.
Sophomore Beth Hagerty continued her fine offensive season, scoring twice to lead the team to victory. Alison Moriarity and Lindsay Jones also scored for Hopewell, who tied their season high in goals for one game in the win.
Sara Spencer and Moriarity had two assists each, and Anna Nyktas had her first two of the year.
Head coach Mike LoRicco was proud of the victory, considering the much-improved nature of the Trenton team.
"This isn’t your grandma’s Trenton," head coach Mike LoRicco said about his opponent. "They played well and their defense wasn’t bad. They were aggressive and played soccer, not kickball.
"I give all the credit to the coach over there. He had no subs that day, but had his kids ready to play."
Heidi Rarich was in net in the first half, making three saves, and Lauren Reading played the second, making five stops.
"After the game I congratulated the team on making the tournament," said LoRicco. "I didn’t want it to come to the last few games of the year when a bounce could go the wrong way or someone could get hurt. There’s work we have to do if we want home field advantage."
The next game was not as happy of an occasion, as the girls lost a hard-fought game, 1-0, to Hillsborough. It was the second Saturday in a row that the girls lost a game against a non-CVC team.
"It was a little disappointing," said LoRicco. "It was an evenly-matched game and we pounded them for a little while, but could not capitalize on our opportunities."
Rarich played well in goal once again, making nine saves and keeping her team in the game the entire afternoon.
"The crossbar and goal posts have become our enemy," LoRicco said. "We played well enough to win, but didn’t. Our defense played well and Heidi played really well."
The final game of the week would come against Lawrenceville and it would end just as it started, in a scoreless tie. There was no overtime in this one because the prep school does not play overtime in non-conference games.
Hopewell (9-3-2) outshot their opponent, 19-6, but could not slip one past the goalie.
"We controlled most of the flow of the game," LoRicco said. "We had three almost goals in the first five minutes of the game. "We have the talent. The only missing piece is confidence. Maybe after the first one that hits the bar and goes in, the flood gates will open for us. Right now the ball just isn’t bouncing our way."