Uniondale, Malverne/East Rockaway battle to draw

Malverne/East Rockaway’s girls’ soccer team saw its three-game winning streak come to an end Saturday morning, but the Rockin’ Mules still managed a hard-fought 1-1 draw with visiting Uniondale thanks in large part to junior goalkeeper Kiera Stephens.

Stephens made 24 saves, including 16 in the first half, and allowed just a penalty kick goal to Karla Martinez as Malverne/East Rockaway (7-2-2 in Nassau Conference AAA/AA5) overcame the absence of top defender Sophia Pappas for all but the first 20 minutes due to injury.

“We lost to them 3-0 the first time, so to battle back from being down 1-0 at halftime to get the tie, we’ll take it,” Stephens said. “Everyone on defense worked hard and we possessed the ball more in the second half. It’s fun to be having such a great season.”

Nicole Buzzetta netted the game-tying goal with 26 minutes remaining and the Rockin’ Mules almost won it in the closing seconds. The Knights (6-0-5) extended their unbeaten streak to 11 games but have some work to do to catch Roosevelt for the conference top spot.

“We’ve been pretty steady in all areas of the field,” Uniondale assistant coach Tim Godoy said. “The girls are working well together and our captains have been great. We have a mix of upperclassmen and underclassmen that’s developed nice chemistry.”

Martinez, who also scored on a penalty kick in the first meeting between the teams Sept. 12, opened the scoring in the 32nd minute with a hard shot just inside the right post on a penalty kick. Stephens guessed correctly and barely missed getting her fingers on it.

“Next time I might have to go left,” Martinez said of her penalty kick direction. “I’m just glad it went in.”

Stephens, who made 15 saves against Uniondale in the road defeat and has 143 stops in 11 games, was kept extremely busy in the first half. Pappas, described by first-year coach Alexa Adduci as the Rockin’ Mules’ defensive leader, watched the final 60 minutes from the bench after tweaking a knee. Eighth-grader Scarlet Minnick, freshman Ariana Chinchilla, Dayanara Jose Merino, Paulina Cuthbert, Ariella Pabon and Sonia Velasquez did a tremendous job in the second half, limiting Uniondale’s chances. Cuthbert (9) and Chinchilla (7) are also the team’s leading goal scorers.

“We had a lot of kids step up today and Kiera was incredible,” Adduci said. “Kiera has become more and more aggressive with each game. She was a two-year starter on JV and she’s just a confident keeper.”

With a must-win scenario against Roosevelt on deck, the Knights will host the rematch on their new turf field. The first meeting was a 1-1 draw. Godoy said the defensive work of Emily Ramos, Kimberly Calderon, Sara Chavez and Kimberlyn Hernandez, and the steady goalkeeping of Ashley Bonilla has been outstanding.

“We’ve been working hard since the preseason,” Uniondale’s Madelyn Hernandez said. “It’s my fourth year and this is our best team. We’re a dedicated group and added some fresh young talent.”