Hannah Hart (4) and Aidan Sheehan (13) converge on Casey Grehan after Grehan took a hard shot off her stomach and into the goal for Steinert’s first goal in Tuesday’s 2-0 victory over Moorestown in the CJ III semifinals. Photo by Amanda “The Homeowner” Ruch
By Rich Fisher
Fish4scores.com
Nov. 8: Lynzie “Lu Lu” Morgan thinks she will pay a tad more attention to the Steinert girls’ soccer team this time around, than she did the last time the Spartans were in a sectional championship game.
“I was seven then, I really didn’t follow it,” said Morgan with a laugh after helping the 2nd-seeded Spartans take a 2-0 win over 3rd-seeded Moorestown in Tuesday’s Central Jersey Group III semifinal at Steinert. “I just know this is a dream come true for all of us.”
Steinert is actually one win from an even better dream, with top-seeded Wall standing in the way of the Spartans and their first sectional title since Kasey Reid’s goal gave them a 1-0 win over Jackson Memorial in the 2007 CJ IV title game.
Steinert’s girls’ soccer team celebrates its 2-0 victory over Moorestown in Tuesday’s Central Jersey Group III semifinal. Photo by Amanda “The Homeowner” Ruch.
The CJ III championship game is Friday and will be Steinert’s first away match of the states. Apparently, that’s not a concern.
“I feel like we’re on such a roll, nothing can get in our way at this point,” Morgan said.
“I feel we’ll do fine,” said Casey Grehan, who scored the game’s first goal in an unconventional manner. “We came so far. With our ability we could play with anybody.”
Steinert (19-2) is up against a Crimson Knights team that raised its record to 22-1 after Tuesday’s 3-1 win over Allentown. Amy Paternoster had 24 goals and 17 assists heading into that contest and Lauren Karabin had 13 goals and 12 assists.
Steinert’s Emily Gulsby (19) dribbles upfield against Moorestown in Tuesday’s CJ III semifinal. Photo by Amanda “The Homeowner” Ruch.
“We know they have talent and they’re a good team,” coach Mike “Stinger” Hastings said. “It’s gonna be a battle to beat the number one seed. We knew going into this, we have to play at our best. If you want to be the best you have to beat the best.”
Assistant coach Chelsea Pitonyak scouted the Brick Township-Wall game since Brick was Steinert’s CJ III quarterfinal foe. While there, she picked up a few tidbits on Wall.
“We have a little on them,” Hastings said. “It’s just one of those things. We got to where we want to get to. We want to play for a championship so we have a chance to do that on Friday.”
They got that chance by surviving a tough Moorestown squad (14-5-1), which traded unsuccessful scoring opportunities with Steinert in the first half.
The Spartans got a big break after intermission. With Grehan running through the box, a Moorestown defender tried clearing the ball and it slammed into her very muscular stomach and ricocheted into the back of the net from 10 yards out.
Grehan had no idea she had just scored her third goal of the year with 22:49 remaining.
“Honestly no,” the junior said. “I just blacked out. When everybody started running to me it was just a great feeling. I didn’t even know what happened.”
Steinert began to take the play from that point, and nice work by Morgan set up the next goal. The junior took a ball from Aidan Sheehan and dribbled past two defenders before getting taken down from behind in the box.
Lynzie Morgan gets ahead of her Moorestown defender and then gets taken down, setting up a Giana Pitttaro penalty kick for Steinert’s second goal of the game. Photos by Amanda “The Homeowner” Ruch
“Oh my God, every nerve in my system was going,” Morgan said. “Aidan sent me the ball, I knew I had to get at least a touch on it to goal. It was the perfect ball by Aidan, the girl just pushed me from behind and I kind of fell. I was right in line with the goalie, had to shoot it either left or right but I got pushed.”
A penalty kick was awarded and Morgan had no problem letting Giana Pittaro take the honors. Pittaro buried it for her 19th of the season with 11:21 left and the Spartans went on from there. Erika Golik made five saves for the shutout.
“It was such a relief to get that second goal,” said Grehan, who had a mark on her stomach from the shot she took.
Kelsey Espnenorst (20) clears the ball from the Quakers Jillian Calhoun. Photo by Amanda “The Homeowner” Ruch
The victory put Steinert within one of the 2007 team, which notched its 20th victory in the CJ IV finals.
“We just wanted it,” Grehan said. “That’s all it came down to. We wanted it more and we want to keep going.”
“The kids dug deep, they played their hearts out and that’s all I asked for,” Hastings said. “I tell them just leave it on the field. You have to leave everything on the field or you’re not going to play again. They don’t want this season to end, I don’t want it to end. We just want to see it keep going.”
Morgan said she couldn’t put into words what it meant going to the finals.
Steinert’s Casey Grehan (21) and Moorestown’s Emily Brettschneider go after the ball. Photo by Amanda “The Homeowner” Ruch.
“From the start Hastings been saying we’re going to get there and now we’re here, it’s just crazy,” she said. “Our record has been super good, we knew state time was our time to shine and I feel like we’re going all the way.”
And she’ll even be paying attention this time around.
