(Riverdale, NY) – There is something about this team that suggests remarkable things are bound to happen whenever they take the field. Despite a youthful roster that includes only three seniors, there is a certain swagger to this group, a quiet confidence and determination exuding that they know how to win no matter what obstacles are in their way. The Mount Saint Vincent Women's Soccer team is simply special, and while Wednesday's performance against Medgar Evers was not their best, it proved just how special they are … and how dangerous they could be.
Freshman Jamie Longo (Concord, MA/Concord-Carlisle HS) scored the most improbable goal of her young career, a perfectly-placed bomb from more than 30 yards out that somehow found its way into the upper corner at 2:04 of overtime to catapult the Mount to its fourth straight victory, 3-2 over Medgar Evers during a game played at Mount Saint Vincent. The unassisted goal was sheer will-power, as it was Longo's tenacity that allowed the Mount the opportunity to force overtime in the first place, and her persistence that won the game.
Medgar Evers took to the field a team on a mission, and their physical style of play seemed to rattle the Dolphins early. The Cougars (1-4, 1-1 HVWAC), scored in the 34th minute, on a beautiful – albeit controversial – cross and kick that marked the first time the Dolphins have been scored upon this season, and ended Mount goalie Alexis Alessi's (Oceanside, NY/Oceanside HS) shut-out streak at 643:30, nearly 11 hours of soccer without a goal against. The goal left the Dolphins on their heels, and the Cougars took the lead into halftime, despite being out-shot 13-3.
Medgar Evers extended the lead to 2-0 in the 50th minute as Kay Francis (Brooklyn, NY/Canarsie HS) scored an unassisted goal, and it appeared as if the Mount's undefeated season and pursuit of the Hudson Valley Women's Athletic Conference (HVWAC) regular season championship were in serious jeopardy. After Francis's goal, the Dolphins played nervous soccer, they played desperate at times, and it appeared as if the game was slipping out of reach.
That is until Longo took over.
With 1:19 remaining in the game, she outhustled two Medgar Evers defenders for a loose ball, and fired a crossing pass to a wide-open Katherine Gentsch (Staten Island, NY/Curtis HS), who tallied her ninth goal of the season to cut the deficit in half. The goal brought life back to the Mount … and in a hurry.
Amazingly, six seconds after Gentsch found the back of the net, sophomore Tracy Frank (Port Jefferson Station, NY/Comsewogue HS) fired what appeared to be a shot from an impossible angle more than 20 yards from the goal that somehow bent its way into the upper corner to make it a 2-2 game. The goal was Frank's second of the 2006 season. It also set up Longo's heroics in overtime.
Overall, Mount Saint Vincent outshot Medgar Evers 30-9 and held a decisive edge in possession, but Medgar Evers freshman goalie Charlene Brown (Queens, NY/Springfield Gardens HS) kept things close by making nine saves. While Alessi saw her shutout streak come to a close, her five saves allowed the Mount to stay in the game until the offense finally clicked late in the game.
Mount Saint Vincent returns to action on Friday, Sept. 29 when they travel to Manhattanville for a crucial Skyline Conference contest at 7:00 p.m.
