Malverne/East Rockaway wins conference

Posted

When the 2017 Nassau County girls’ high school soccer league breakdown was released, there was certainly reason to believe Malverne/East Rockaway would be in the mix for conference supremacy. The Rockin’ Mules had numerous returnees, including their top scorer, and would be dropping down to Conference AB-6.

The season got off to a slow start, but after a few significant lineup adjustments Malverne/East Rockaway got on a roll and didn’t stop posting wins until it earned the league crown. On Oct. 18, juniors Giavanna DeMilia and Kailey Hyland scored two goals apiece to lead the team to a 5-1 victory over Elmont to clinch the conference championship.

The Rockin’ Mules saw their run of 12 matches without a loss come to a halt when they fell to host Friends Academy 1-0 in a Class A playoff outbracket match this past Saturday morning. Malverne/East Rockaway finished with an overall record of 11-3-1 (9-1 in league play.)

Despite the loss, the fantastic journey wasn’t lost on head coach Joe Lores. “When the season began, we were hoping to be able to get back to where we were when we won the league a couple years ago,” Lores said. “We had a great run. It was a pleasure to coach this group. The girls from the two schools blended together well, and everyone bought into what we were trying to do. The season ended with a tough loss to a good team.”

Advancing to the outbracket game was no easy feat for Malverne/East Rockaway. The team had to face Mineola, a team it had split with during the regular season, in a match that was win or go home. 

It took two halves and two mandatory 10-minute overtime periods, but in the end the Rockin’ Mules emerged with a dramatic 3-2 win. Senior Gabby Walsh executed a perfect corner kick and Hyland headed the ball into the net with just 57 seconds remaining in the second overtime period to give Malverne/East Rockaway the win.

DeMilia opened the scoring, however Mineola held a 2-1 lead late in the match and appeared to be on its way to a win. But, with six minutes remaining DeMilia struck again. She took a nifty through ball from Hyland, and booted the ball toward the net. The keeper dove and got a piece of the ball, but not enough to stop it from trickling over the line for the game winner.

Hyland, who led the county in scoring (23 goals) and now has a school-record 88 goals for her career, earned All-County and Conference Player of the Year honors. Junior keeper Emily Chelius was named the league’s top netminder. Junior Alexandra Pozo earned All-Conference recognition, with Walsh picking up All-Classification and Scholar-Athlete honors.

The team’s stingy defense yielded just 10 goals during its unbeaten streak. Lores gave kudos to Hunter Vertuccio, Laura Millar, Kristie Chinchilla, and Angela Morgan for stellar play on the defensive end.