The Garnets started off the season topping Nyack and Suffern in away games, and beat Ursuline 2-1 in their home opener September 9.

By Melanie Cane

The Garnets started off the season topping Nyack and Suffern in away games, and beat Ursuline 2-1 in their home opener September 9. Despite the trio of wins, Coach Emily Fitzgerald says there is room for improvement. “The girls came out flat in all three games.” The match against Ursuline exemplified the problem. The Koalas dominated and scored in the first ten minutes.

Coach Fitzgerald waited a few minutes after the goal to call a time-out, “to give the girls time to figure it out on their own.” Ellie O’Callaghan said that time-out was the key to turning the game around. “Coach’s timing was perfect and she said a lot of smart things that got us motivated.” Fusine Gouvaert knotted the game at one on an unassisted goal. At the end of the first half, the game was tied 1-1.

The Garnets came out strong in the second half with a lot of passing and good support from defense. Although they only scored one more time (Gouvaert again with 27 minutes left in the game), they created a number of scoring opportunities, especially on corner shots.
At the next practice, Coach Fitzgerald plans to work on basics and team defense. “We allowed far too many breakaways and we need to play with heart!” She said the goals would come.

Rye’s next game is a non-league one at White Plains on September 11. They start league September 19 at Harrison.