RED RAMS KNOCK OFF WARRIORS FOR FOURTH STRAIGHT GIRLS SOCCER TITLE
Jamesville’s Maddy Devereux (3) goes for a header against Whitesboro’s Jennifer Deuel (1) late in the contest.
Jeff Pexton-MHTS/PGI photo
On a cold, rainy, downright miserable, night at Chittenango High School, the Jamesville-DeWitt Lady Red Rams scored a goal just 5:01 into the opening half and held on to defeat Whitesboro by a score of 1-0 to claim the Section III, Class “A” Girls Soccer Championship.
Red Rams striker Jessica Holmes, one of only two seniors on the J-D roster, was credited with the lone goal of the game.
While Holmes was the last one to hit the ball for the Rams, it was clear that the goal was inadvertently directed into the net by a W’Boro defender, who appeared to have difficulty gaining a foothold on the rain soaked surface in the box.
J-D’s Jessica Holmes (11) races Whitesboro’s Rebekah Geller (5) for a second half loose ball. Geller was the recipient of the tournament Sportsmanship Award.
It was the third consecutive season that the Lady Warriors and Red Rams reached the pinnacle game in Class “A”, with J-D winning all three.
Whitesboro(17-1) , the Tri-Valley League Champions with 9 seniors on the roster this season, entered the contest ranked #7 in New York State in Class “A” and the #1 seed for the tournament.
Jamesville-DeWitt meanwhile came in ranked #13 in the State and as the #2 seed for the playoffs, having won the Onondaga High School League’s Freedom National Division and amassing a record of (15-1-2).
With Jamesville-DeWitt leading by a goal and both teams being forced to play a championship contest in simply miserable conditions, Whitesboro’s high powered offense ground out some significant scoring threats as the first half wore on.
Whitesboro’s Jordan Case (21) sends a ball forward during first half action, while J-D’s Alex Fontana (16) defends.
Syracuse University recruit Ashley Williams was essentially double and triple teamed all evening by the J-D defense, but still had several looks at the goal in the first 40 minutes.
Williams’ usual pinpoint accuracy was somewhat challenged this evening by the wind, the ball being soaked or a combination of both.
Whitesboro’s Brie Heitz had the best chance to tie the score however, with 10:34 remaining in the opening half, when she drove into the J-D zone and hit a laser beam toward the Rams goal, over the outstretched arms of a leaping Allison Butler.
Heitz’s shot skipped off the cross bar though and the game remained 1 nil in favor of the ladies in red, which is the way we’d go to the intermission.
Jamesville Dewitt had three corner kicks in the first half and keeper Allison Butler stopped 6 Whitesboro shots. Lady Warriors keeper Emilie Mull stopped 2 shots in the first 40 minutes.
Its a Maddy-Maddy World…Ashley Williams (6) works hard as she is double teamed by J-D’s Maddy Devereux (3) and Maddy Frank (24).
The intermissions at the Section III football games this coming weekend will take place within the palatial confines of the Carrier Dome. The players and coaches will be warm, dry and quite comfortable.
Tonight’s championship intermission was enjoyed by these two groups of student athletes as they sat outside for ten minutes in their respective goals, under a steady rain, in 40 degree temperatures.
Did I mention that soccer is played in shorts?
The second half saw the Warriors begin to execute the precision passing game that they have come to be known for.
The ladies in white were the recipients of three corner kicks in the second half, but all sailed high, out of the box and out of harm’s way.
Brie Heitz had another chance with thirteen minutes to go with a point blank shot, but it just rolled right of the cage.
The ball says it all!
Jamesville-DeWitt got a real scare with eleven minutes remaining in regular time when keeper Allison Butler was forced to leave the game with an apparent injury after a collision in the box.
Butler was replaced by freshman backup Chloe Hayward. Butler returned to the game within two minutes and just in time to hold off the Lady Warriors frantic attempts to tie the score in the final minutes.
The Lady Rams held on for the win to capture their fourth consecutive Section III Championship and advance to State Regional Play next week.
Whitesboro finishes a terrific season at (17-2), while J-D improves to (16-1-2).
Congratulations to both teams for giving it your very best effort tonight and giving the fans a game to remember!
Jamesville-Dewitt 1 Whitesboro 0
Box Score
1 2 Final
Jamesville-DeWitt 1 0 1
Whitesboro 0 0 0
J-D Leaders
Jessica Holmes – 1 goal
Allison Butler – 9 saves
Whitesboro Leaders
Emilie Mull - 3 saves
Ashley Williams heads into a driving rain to get a shot off for Whitesboro early in the contest.
