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Overcast Lady Falcons on cusp of .500
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Christie DeMarco, right, scored both Valley Stream South goals in a 2-1 Conference ABC-III victory over Clarke on Oct. 8.
Kathy Leistner/Herald
A pair of first-half goals off the foot of sophomore Christie DeMarco propelled Valley Stream South to a 2-1 victory over Clarke in a Conference ABC-IV girls’ soccer game on Oct. 8.
The Lady Falcons (3-4-1) got six saves from senior goalkeeper Tricia Zarro en route to snapping a two-game slide. They also surpassed last year’s win total for new coach Dina Cali, who is hoping for a break-even record when all’s said and done.
“I’d be thrilled if we can finish .500,” said Cali, the former coach at Valley Stream North. “It takes a long time to grow and develop as a team. The girls have been wonderful. I had to rely on them a lot at the beginning and they made the transition a smooth one.”
Cali inherited a roster with a good mix of veteran and younger players. South has six seniors, four juniors, four sophomores and a talented eighth-grader, Brianna Knight, who set up one of DeMarco’s goals against Clarke. “We’ve been a bit inconsistent but we’ve also battled injuries and sickness,” Cali said. “The girls always play to the end.”
The offense has been a constant for the most part. Starting forwards DeMarco and junior Alexa De La Torre have combined for nine goals and four assists. Each has enjoyed a three-point game. DeMarco had a goal and two assists in a 4-0 win at Clarke and De La Torre scored twice and had an assist in a 3-3 tie with Seaford.
“They’re similar players with tremendous speed and make us dangerous up top,” said Cali, who noted reserve senior forward Regina Laube is the team’s emotional leader. “They’ve scored in a variety of ways. It’s nice we’ll have them both back next year.”
Knight might be the youngest player in the conference, but no one can tell. She’s worked at outside halfback with senior Lisa Benison and sophomores Elizabeth Aguirre and Nuha Hamarsha and picked up her first varsity goal in the Seaford game on Sept. 30. “Breanna has been exposed to a high level of play through club soccer and isn’t intimidated by older players,” Cali said.
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