South Side ousts MacArthur in semifinal

Not much separated defending Nassau and Long Island Class A girls’ soccer champion MacArthur and South Side during the regular season, and Sunday’s semifinal playoff matchup at Cold Spring Harbor was no different.

The difference came early for second-seeded South Side, which used senior striker Hannah Porter’s goal in the 12th minute and senior goalkeeper Avery Testa’s fourth shutout in the past five games to dethrone the Generals in what’s become typical rainy conditions, 1-0.

Now in Class AA under the state’s new classification breakdown, the Cyclones (9-3-5 overall) advanced to face longtime rival Garden City for the county title on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Cold Spring Harbor. MacArthur finished 8-7-2.

“I thought our girls started strong and played well,” South Side coach Judi Croutier said. “MacArthur is tough and we split games during the regular season, so this was the rubber match and we expected it to be close. Of course, we would’ve liked another goal in the first half. In soccer you’re always worried, but we hunkered down and got the job done.”

MacArthur’s best scoring chance came late in the first half when senior Hailey Metzger, who had 2 goals and an assist in a 5-1 quarterfinal victory over No. 11 Kennedy Oct. 26, sent a blast over Testa’s outstretched arms and off the crossbar. Testa made a relatively routine save at the horn off junior Bella Calabro, who also scored in the Generals’ playoff win.

“It was two evenly matched teams and they got the goal,” MacArthur coach Steve Costello said. “We weathered the storm early and our goalie made some nice saves. The margin was razor thin.”

The first half featured steady rain and plenty of scoring opportunities for South Side, which took out No. 7 Mepham in the quarterfinals 1-0 on freshman Katori Martin’s goal.

Porter was front and center in most of the pressure against MacArthur and cashed on a through ball from senior defender Morgan Harloff with a blast into the upper right corner. “It was a great pass and I felt in my heart the shot was going to go in,” Porter said. “I was hitting the ball well during warmups, so I had confidence.”

MacArthur junior goalkeeper Jocelyn Cleary made sure South Side’s lead remained the slimmest of margins.

“We just had to stay calm and collected,” said senior defender Charley Doreste, who along with Harloff, Nora Basile, Kayla Hubler and Viviana Haley helped the William & Mary bound Testa post her eighth shutout of 2023. “Last year unfortunately ended early for us and it didn’t feel right. We’re always a close-knit team and we’re excited to keep going.”

The Cyclones take a five-game win streak into the finals. Their last defeat came Oct. 10, 2-0 at Garden City. The first meeting was a 1-1 draw.

“The senior leadership on this team is outstanding,” Croutier said. “It’s a big game and a big rivalry. We have a tie and a loss against them, so we’re due.”