The Rye Country Day girls’ soccer team has raised the bar this season, starting day one when the Wildcats beat Riverdale — reigning NYS Association of Independent Schools champion — to a victory over Taft, whom they have lost to many years in a row.
By Melanie Cane
The Rye Country Day girls’ soccer team has raised the bar this season, starting day one when the Wildcats beat Riverdale — reigning NYS Association of Independent Schools champion — to a victory over Taft, whom they have lost to many years in a row.
The Wildcats are now 10-1-2 after beating Hackley 1-0 on Tuesday, Horace Mann 3-1 at home on October 11, and tying Greenwich Academy 0-0 away last month.
They’ve also had big victories against Riverdale, Fieldston, and Dalton. Most of the team’s remaining games are against Fairchester Athletic Association opponents.
Four starting players are injured, but other players have stepped up to fill the gap, including Casey Berkowitz, Sam Kost, Nery Mendowitz, Ruby Aresty, Zoe Kost, and Nicola Leake.
Against Horace Mann, Stephanie Sabatini, the team’s leading scorer, had two goals and one assist; Liz Judd, runner-up in total goals, also scored. However, Sabatini, who scored 25 goals in 11 games, has been sidelined by injuries since the Greenwich game.
Coach Alin Andrei said, “The girls played very hard, moving the ball around, trying to create scoring opportunities.”
With five games left in regular season play, Coach Andrei said the team “must stay connected and treat the games very seriously if we want to be one of the top teams.”
