Long Beach rolls conference foes

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Expectations were sky high at the onset of the girls’ soccer season at Long Beach. The team had a slew of talent returning, and the Lady Marines were placed in the Nassau Conference III, which meant they would not be facing the county’s elite Class AA teams twice apiece.

While coach Tara Wesselhoft felt her team was strong enough to play another level up, she and her team set a goal to claim conference supremacy, and to earn a playoff berth. The Lady Marines took things a step further by being completely dominant.

After Monday afternoon’s 5-0 victory over visiting Uniondale, they finished the regular season with a 10-0-0 record. Junior Valerie Catrambone scored three goals to lead the fireworks. It was the team’s seventh shutout. The Lady Marines outscored their conference opponents by a margin of 51-3.

“One of the motivating factors was to prove to people that we are capable of playing in a stronger conference,” Wesselhoft said. “We’re at a good place in terms of jumping back into the Conference AA-II. We’ll have a lot of players back next season. One of our biggest struggles in the past was finishing. We were losing too many one-goal games. We’re very excited about the playoffs and the future.”

While averaging five goals per match says a lot for the team’s offensive prowess, the strength of Long Beach’s backline will be the key in the postseason. Juniors Chrystal Posada and Kelly DiResto, a pair that has being playing together on the varsity for four seasons, have been outstanding at stopper and sweeper, respectively. The unit has been strengthened by the play of outside backs Sarah Whalen and Victoria Posada.

The Lady Marines have filled up the scoresheet, and they’ve done it by committee. Fifteen different girls found the back of the net in 2015, with Sophia Valentin scoring 10 times, and Grace Conway and Catrambone each scoring nine goals. Conway and Catrambone are both among Nassau’s top 15 in total points.

While Long Beach wasn’t tested a ton, its keepers have done a nice job of keeping the ball out of the net when challenged. Junior Mary Elizabeth McCourt, sophomore Samantha Inselberg, and senior Emma Gilroy all saw significant action in goal. 

Inselberg had five saves in a 2-1 victory over a feisty Freeport team. Conway scored both goals for Long Beach, including the game winner with nine minutes to play.

The Lady Marines now await word on an opponent in the opening round of the Class AA playoffs, set to begin this Saturday.

Wesselhoft and her team are looking forward to the challenge. “We played a tough non-league schedule, and were very competitive,” she said. “We’re not settling for what we’ve accomplished, and we’re not just happy to be here. We want to prove that we belong, and make a game of it. We know that no matter who we play, we’re going to be facing a tough team.”