Elmont boasts elite defense

The Elmont girls’ soccer team holds two truths to be self-evident even though they don’t make sense when put together.

There’s no team in Nassau County to concede fewer goals than the Spartans, who have given up just six goals in 12 matches.

And yet, Elmont will not play in the postseason.

The other teams close to Elmont’s defensive record — Garden City, Seaford and Plainedge — are all locks for the playoffs.

But that’s the reality in Conference AAA/AA-5. If you’re not in first, like Roosevelt is, your chances at the county playoffs are slim.

With two games remaining in the regular season, Elmont is 5-1-6, fourth place in a tight conference.

Their identity has been a blue-collar one, where the girls sacrifice stats for a defensive work rate.

Goals, assists and saves are the only stats that garner attention in high school soccer. Duels won, tackles, or headed clearances are not computed.

“We try to emphasize sometimes we’re going to have to play with nine girls behind the ball,” Elmont coach Ahmed Hayat said. “It's not just the goalie, not just the defense, the midfielders got to get back, it’s a team effort because in our conference you can’t be given up three, four or five goals. It’s just not feasible to win games like that.”

Defensively, the Spartans are guided by a back four of former midfielders, who sacrificed offensive stats for the betterment of the program. And there’s goalkeeper Arashel Vargas, the softball catcher who two years ago was interested in transitioning to another sport and playing goalie.

Senior Makayla Noel has played every minute of every game, minus the four matches she missed in the middle of the season when she was out because of concussion protocol.

Noel, who was out for a critical 1-0 loss to division-leading Roosevelt, is also the team’s second-leading scorer. She partners with Kimberly Martinez at center back with juniors Kahela Michel and Sharon Na’Anmiap at outside backs. Na’Anmiap, who scored her first varsity goal against Sewanhaka, has made great strides this season as a leader.

The scoring has largely been on Amira Elrington-Edwards’ shoulders and she’s delivered in a big way as the team’s leading scorer. The senior is another player who has played every minute of every game except the 1-1 draw at Westbury due to a toe injury.

“She's honestly probably one of the best girls I'll ever coach at Elmont in this program,” Hayat said. “Her tactical awareness and knowledge of the game are just something you really can't coach.”

Jenna Prashad, who partners with Elrington-Edwards, is another hard worker who never leaves the field.

“To just see the progression and the determination they've all shown is nice to see and they've taken it to heart,” Hayat said. “They come out and play hard every day. It’s a small team, but even when they're banged up and hurt, they kind of push through it.”